WholesomeCo Partners with The Weldon Project and Rasa to Impact Social Change for Those Affected by Cannabis Prohibition
Credit: Christina Winter
Medical cannabis operator WholesomeCo is placing the spotlight on criminal justice reform and advocacy in the medical cannabis industry. The company is marking 4/20, the highest sales day of the year traditionally for legal cannabis companies in the U.S., and Utah, by donating 4.20 percent of all April 20 sales to The Weldon Project, a charity dedicated to funding social change and financial aid for those currently serving prison time for federal cannabis-related offenses. In 2020 alone, 5,778 adults and 1,069 juveniles were arrested for possession of cannabis in Utah. In all, over 8,000 Utahns were arrested for cannabis in 2020, which equates to one cannabis arrest every hour.
“We chose to partner with The Weldon Project and its Mission Green initiative because it helps further our mission to enhance the lives of our patients by meeting them where they are along their personal medical cannabis journey,” said WholesomeCo CEO Chris Jeffery. “By supporting organizations like The Weldon Project and Mission Green on our highest sales day of the year, WholesomeCo is helping lead the conversation surrounding medical cannabis and acknowledging the work that remains to be done to further justice for those still facing legal effects from cannabis prohibition.”
The Weldon Project’s Mission Green initiative is dedicated to raising the bar for awareness, social justice, and social equity. It provides unique ways for cannabis businesses and consumers to participate in a national campaign helping to provide relief to the individuals and families negatively impacted by cannabis prohibition.
The Weldon Project was founded in honor of Weldon Angelos, an up-and-coming Utah music producer who was arrested for a first-time cannabis-related offense and sentenced to 55 years in federal prison. Angelos had served a total of 13 years of prison time before being granted clemency. Angelos would eventually receive a full presidential pardon in December 2020. His case has been cited as a major part of the recent cannabis criminal justice reform movement.
Because having a criminal record can lead to lifelong consequences, WholesomeCo is also using this opportunity to spotlight two expungement related organizations, Rasa Public Benefit Corporation and Clean Slate Utah. Clean Slate Utah is a nonprofit organization formed to raise awareness of a new law in Utah that provides automatic record clearance to over 450,000 Utahns with qualifying misdemeanor offenses. Rasa is a new public benefit corporation that provides low- cost legal expungement services to people who do not benefit from automatic record clearance. Together, these organizations are making it easier for eligible individuals to clear their records, obtain better housing and jobs, and move forward with their lives. Rasa will be on-site at WholesomeCo’s West Bountiful location on April 20th to help further increase awareness of their services. Please visit www.CleanSlateUtah.org and www.Rasa-Legal.com for more information.
WholesomeCo aims to further its impact on Utah’s medical cannabis industry and patients–as well as furthering its mission as an organization–by continuing to leverage its technology-driven leadership and innovation to improve the lives of many and will continue to seek opportunities to support organizations like The Weldon Project and Rasa that are making a change in the medical cannabis narrative.
