In Canada, the regulation of cannabis has roots in racist bigotry. In 1922, a well-known White Canadian feminist named Emily Murphy wrote a series of articles drawing attention to the evils of drugs like cannabis. In them, she associated drug use with “aliens of colour” who she believed were attempting to “bring about the degeneration of the White race.” Historically Canada’s approach to the regulation of cannabis has been excessive and overly punitive resulting in widespread negative impact that disproportionately harmed Black and Indigenous communities. Throughout the 20th century, activists fought to remove criminal penalties for cannabis possession, often at great personal risk. The protest culture that developed around cannabis activism is reflected in traditional counter-cultural symbology and iconography.
As cannabis became legal, brands began to intentionally move away from traditional cannabis counter-cultural symbology and iconography, using modernized imagery to appeal to the mainstream. As a result, modern cannabis branding has been captured by a sterilized “wellness” aesthetic. The lifestyle imagery associated with this aesthetic is predominantly White, female, thin and free from oppressive influences.
Like many activist organizations working in the cannabis space, we find his deeply problematic.
The dynamic and subversive history of cannabis activism in Canada has
been lost in this branding transformation
“Until recently, the negative branding of cannabis predominantly
looked like ‘the rastaman’ whereas the positive rebranding suddenly
looked like young, white people doing yoga at the park,” she says. “Cannabis has become a class signifier those who get to use, enjoy, and indeed, sell cannabis with ease look nothing like those who have historically been excluded from, and harmed by, the cannabis industry
and its laws.”
Vivianne Wilson, Canadian cannabis pioneer
In 2020, we teamed up multiple award-winning creative agency, Cossette, to re-launch our organization’s brand. We have intentionally stayed away from the a-histrical, modern “wellness” aesthetic that has become commonplace among cannabis brands today. We wanted the visual representation of our organization to acknowledge and pay homage to the sacrifice and struggle that characterized the path to legalization in Canada. Our logo is a hand-written rendition of our name. It represents our own roots: we started as a petition campaign before growing into an organization. Our bold and vibrant fonts depict a sense of urgency: freedom cannot wait. As we build the future of cannabis in Canada, we refuse to forget its past.
Dana Passmore
Retail Ambassador
Dana Passmore was 20 years old studying criminology when cannabis was first legalized, and it fascinated her to think about how an unprecedented federal legalization framework was going to function following 100 years of prohibition. It wasn’t long before she learned about the shortcomings of the Cannabis Act that caused those with pre-legalization charges for cannabis related offences to be left in a perpetual state of criminalization. Knowing that so many people were (and are) still facing the consequences for engaging in an activity that has since become legal never sat right with her, so she started getting involved in advocacy. Dana pursued a Masters of Public Policy and Administration degree to get a better understanding of how policy tools are selected, developed, and implemented from an institutional standpoint, and has used the critical thinking skills she has gained throughout my education to develop a major research project that sheds light on the socioeconomic shortcomings of Canada’s cannabis legalization framework.
Dana started following Cannabis Amnesty in 2019 after becoming completely enthralled by their advocacy work. After three years of quietly supporting their contributions to the legal cannabis space, in 2022, she began volunteering as Cannabis Amnesty’s Retail Ambassador and works to bring the Cannabis Amnesty mission to the retail space to inspire as much engagement as possible. Dana is a proud cofounder of the first-of-its-kind Joints for Justice initiative that drives profits of an OCS-listed cannabis product to the organization, and will keep working alongside this incredible organization until cannabis criminal records are erased.
Laura Liscio
Project Manager, Pardon Clinic Pilot Project
Laura Liscio has a BA (Honours) from Queen’s University. She was called to the bar in 2009 after attending law school at the University of Calgary. While at law school Laura spent 3 years working at the student legal clinic in various roles, as a group leader mentoring other students, and as a full time summer employee. Upon graduating, she received the Provincial Judges’ Award for outstanding contribution at Student Legal Assistance. She was the Volunteer Coordinator at the Volunteer Lawyer Service run by the Calgary Bar Association, where she matched charities and non-profits with the probono services of lawyers, and was also a frequent volunteer at Inn from the Cold.
Laura knew criminal law was her calling early in her legal career. During law school, she worked at the criminal firm of VanHarten Foster Iovinelli and Joshi where she also completed her articles.
When she returned home to Toronto in 2009, Laura practiced at Bernstein Newman and Associates for 4 years before opening her own practice in Toronto in 2013. Laura has an interest in youth work and the rights of young people in the criminal justice system. She has served as CLA representative at 311 Jarvis for 2 terms.
In her criminal defence practice, Laura successfully defends youth and adults from very serious charges including homicide. She is very passionate about issues surrounding racial profiling, accountability for police misconduct, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the presumption of innocence and the expungement of criminal records (convictions and non-convictions).
Laura joined the Cannabis Amnesty team in 2021 as the Project Manager for the Pardon Clinics Pilot Project, which resulted in the development of the Pardon Clinic Toolkit.
Aisha Abawajy
Aisha (she/her) is a second-generation Canadian with Oromo roots. She starts her second year at the Lincoln Alexander School of Law in the fall. She completed her undergraduate degree in Applied Computer Science with a minor in political science in her hometown Kjipuktuk, Mi’kma’ki (Halifax, Nova Scotia), before moving to Toronto to attend law school. Aisha has been involved in student politics and grassroots organizing since high school. She has most recently been the President of the Dalhousie Student Union (2019 – 2020) and the Co-President of the Black Law Students’ Association (2022 – 2023). Aisha strongly believes that when individuals come together and organize strategically around inequities, system change is possible. As a young abolitionist, Aisha is very interested in the radical transformation of our justice system. She believes that making space for critical conversations on the inequities of society is an important first step in addressing them and develops anti-oppression workshops around social justice, community care, solidarity between movements and more as a freelance facilitator. Aisha is also passionate about music, styling curly or textured hair and mental health.
Theo Rodriguez-Garzon
Theo Rodriguez-Garzon is one of two 2022 TOQi Fellows for Cannabis Amnesty. Their enthusiasm for mutual-aid, advocacy, and community building led them to Cannabis Amnesty, where they hope to utilize their design and content creation skills to advocate for those impacted by cannabis-related convictions.
Before joining Cannabis Amnesty, Theo studied professional communications at Toronto Metropolitan University, and worked as an undergraduate research assistant for the Explanatory Journalism Project. Theo is also a drag artist and performer, hoping to imbue their creative flair into their advocacy work alongside Cannabis Amnesty. They are passionate about art, literature and design, and are eager to put their skills to the service of those advocating for true cannabis amnesty, and equity within the cannabis industry.
Akwasi Owusu-Bempah
Board Member
Akwasi Owusu-Bempah (PhD) is an academic, author and changemaker. He is a professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Toronto, an Affiliate Scientist at Canada’s Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Race Equity Lead at the Centre on Drug Policy Evaluation and Director of Research for Cannabis Amnesty. He also serves as Chair of the Governing Board of Massey College. Akwasi’s academic work has examined the racialized nature of drug law enforcement in North America. He has collaborated with major media outlets, such as the Toronto Star and Vice News to advance public dialogue about the perils of the war on drugs.
He recently sat as a member of Health Canada’s Expert Task Force on Substance Use and contributed to the City of Toronto’s decriminalization efforts. With an eye on social justice, he is currently exploring how cannabis legalization is being used as a means to redress the various harms caused by drug prohibition. He is the author of Waiting to Inhale: Race, Cannabis and the End of Prohibition with Tahira Rehmatullah (2023, MIT Press).
Akwasi began his academic career in the United States at Indiana University, Bloomington. Prior to becoming a professor, he held positions with Canada’s National Judicial Institute, the Public Health Agency of Canada, and Ontario’s Ministry of the Solicitor General. He frequently appears on radio and tv and publishes regularly in academic and popular forums. Akwasi’s work and commentary has recently been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Forbes, The Guardian, and The Globe and Mail.
Sameena Ibrahim
Director of Marketing and Communications
Board Member
Sameena Ibrahim is a brand and strategy leader with over a decade of global experience working in the sports, lifestyle and cannabis sectors. Her role at Cannabis Amnesty is Director of Marketing & Communications, and she has led the brand re-launch by bringing in the multiple award-winning agency, Cossette, to work on strategy, design and creative for the organization.
Prior to joining Cannabis Amnesty, Sameena was based in Dubai, where she worked at adidas, managing PR and Brand Activations for the iconic sports brand and its subsidiaries across the Middle East and North Africa. Since moving to Toronto in 2019, she has worked in the cannabis industry, building brand and retail strategies while navigating the industry’s constant evolution as an immigrant WOC. She is passionate about equity in the cannabis industry and believes that there is a long way to go in recognizing and undoing the harms that decades of prohibition has caused.
Stephanie DiGiuseppe
Director of Operations
Board Member
Stephanie DiGiuseppe is a founding member of Cannabis Amnesty, a partner at a Toronto litigation firm, and an advocate for systemic change in the areas of criminal justice reform and equality, diversity and inclusion.
Stephanie’s advocacy work spans from reducing barriers and increasing capacities for youth in the criminal justice and school system, lobbying the Canadian government for humane and compassionate justice system reform, and working with communities affected by cannabis prohibition through her work with Cannabis Amnesty.
As Cannabis Amnesty’s Director of Operations, Stephanie has managed key partnerships with industry leaders such as Canopy Growth, Houseplant, Hiku Brands, HEXO, Aurora and others. She has spearheaded some of Cannabis Amnesty’s most exciting projects, including the Doja x Cannabis Amnesty PARDON sub campaign and PARDON truck activation, which was a finalist for the 2019 Canadian Cannabis Award for Top Non-Profit, Charity or Community Initiative.
In the courtroom, Stephanie defends individuals in complex criminal and public law proceedings and has been counsel on some of Canada’s most high profile criminal case. In 2020, Stephanie received the Precedent Setter Award, which recognizes lawyers who have “become masters of their practice areas and agents of change in the community”. In 2022, Stephanie was selected by her peers as one of Canada’s “Best Lawyers” in the area of criminal defence and in 2021 as one of Toronto’s Top Criminal Defence Lawyers by Post City’s TRNTOPublication.
Annamaria Enenajor
Executive Director
Board Chair
Annamaria founded Cannabis Amnesty in 2018 and has been its driving force since its inception. Described by the Toronto Star as a “brilliant, young legal mind,” Annamaria Enenajor is an indefatigable advocate both inside and outside the courtroom. She is a partner at Ruby Shiller Enenajor DiGiuseppe, Barristers, one of Canada’s Top 10 criminal law boutiques according to Canadian Lawyer magazine. She practises criminal, regulatory and constitutional law as well as civil law when it involves state accountability. She has argued before all levels of court in Ontario and at the Supreme Court of Canada. Annamaria graduated from the McGill Faculty of Law as the Principal David L. Johnston Gold Medalist with both common law and civil law degrees in 2012 and subsequently clerked at the Supreme Court of Canada for Chief Justice Richard Wagner.
Annamaria is an outspoken public advocate for evidence-based and compassionate criminal justice reform, and frequently writes, lectures and consults on access to justice and creating a cannabis legalization regime that is equitable and inclusive for all Canadians. Her work has been profiled in Flare, the Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, and Toronto Life. She has received numerous awards and recognitions for her public advocacy, including being named one of the 50 most influential Torontonians of 2018 by Toronto Life and one of the 32 Women of the Year in 2018 by Chatelaine.