NAACP Responds to Cannabis Reclassification
WASHINGTON — Today's executive order to reschedule cannabis is a long-overdue acknowledgment that decades of federal drug policy were rooted in misinformation and resulted in profound harm, particularly to Black communities. However, the executive order does not go far enough to correct and prevent that harm.
NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson released the following statement:
"The federal government's decision to finally recognize that cannabis has actual medical value confirms what communities have known all along: criminalizing cannabis was misguided and unjust. But justice requires more than a change in drug scheduling. It demands meaningful action.
"For generations, cannabis laws were used to justify over-policing, mass incarceration, and the systematic exclusion of Black Americans from opportunity. While rescheduling cannabis is a step forward, it doesn't repair the damage caused by decades of using federal policy to justify punishments to people who didn't deserve it.
"Rescheduling cannabis cannot become a win for markets while people remain behind bars. True reform means the immediate release of individuals still incarcerated for cannabis offenses, automatic expungement of past convictions, and real protections for equity licensees who were promised opportunity as part of legalization.
"The NAACP has long maintained that civil rights must be the foundation of cannabis reform, not an afterthought. Without intentional safeguards, legalization risks repeating the same inequities it claims to undo, allowing large corporations to profit while Black communities are displaced and denied ownership.
"Ultimately, justice demands more than rescheduling. It demands full declassification and an end to using federal drug policy as a tool of punishment. Anything less would be hypocritical."
The NAACP will continue to advocate for comprehensive cannabis reform that centers racial equity, accountability, and repair — ensuring that freedom, opportunity, and justice are not selectively applied. To learn more about NAACP's position on decriminalizing medical and adult use of cannabis, click here.
About NAACP
The NAACP advocates, agitates, and litigates for the civil rights due to Black America. Our legacy is built on the foundation of grassroots activism by the biggest civil rights pioneers of the 20th century and is sustained by 21st-century activists. From classrooms and courtrooms to city halls and Congress, our network of members across the country works to secure the social and political power that will end race-based discrimination. That work is rooted in racial equity, civic engagement, and supportive policies and institutions for all marginalized people. We are committed to a world without racism where Black people enjoy equitable opportunities in thriving communities.
NOTE: The Legal Defense Fund – also referred to as the NAACP-LDF - was founded in 1940 as a part of the NAACP, but now operates as a completely separate entity.