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Heads magazine, March 2005, p. 16 (photo: chris conrad)
CHRIS CONRAD
This month’s activist, Chris Conrad, is an author, political strategist, researcher and spin doctor whose work stands heads above the rest. Although you may have already noticed him writing this publication’s Notes & News, Chris is by far one of California’s most recognized figures in the marijuana movement.
Chris Conrad got his start [in cannabis activism] in 1988 when his niece returned from a DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) meeting and he realized she had been told nothing but lies and bigotry. He promised to bring her the facts and after some research found out cannabis had over 50,000 uses.
He then created BACH (Business Alliance for Commerce in Hemp) to promote hemp’s commercial applications. This led him to work with Jack Herer in 1990 writing the Emperor Wears No Clothes. A few years later he moved to Spain where he wrote his first book — an ode to the many uses of cannabis hemp — that would put him on the marijuana map forever, Hemp: Lifeline to the Future.
He then traveled and worked around Europe, first in Holland where he was curator of the Hash, Marijuana and Hemp Museum, then Switzerland to further his research and train with top growers. Upon his return to the U.S., he was working with his wife Mikki Norris and Herer on their own ballot initiative when they heard about Dennis Peron’s similar project. Without hesitation, they joined on as the petition coordinators for volunteers in the campaign that eventually passed Prop 215, a voter proposition to legalize medical marijuana in California.
After that election, he started working as a court expert on marijuana. With Prop 215 now law, medical marijuana cases required an expert witness to tender evidence supporting medical use. His training in Europe was considered legal and, as he has never sold marijuana, he can testify without incriminating himself. All his efforts were paying off in a big way as he could now educate the courts properly about marijuana in a serious and credible fashion.
His work is not limited to the medical use; rather he considers every aspect of the plant. He splits the issue into three threads- industrial, medical and adult use-and has devised intertwined campaigns for each.
On the hemp front, The BACH campaign of the 1990s set out to restore the word “hemp” to its rightful place in the English language and saw the revival of industrial hemp throughout the world. Since then the hemp project has had global victories. In fact, the Hemp Industries Association‘s lifting of the hemp foods ban in the U.S. is the only legal reform to completely overcome the DEA’s prohibition in federal court in 30 years.
On the medical front he was instrumental in legalizing marijuana in California. Over the years he has worked on hundreds of court cases, many of which have had dismissals or acquittals and in some cases led to Appellate and Supreme Court rulings.
On the recreational front he believes “nobody wants kids to get marijuana, but sending adults to prison for it is wrong. The use of ID to establish age is the only realistic way to protect children and respect adult rights. Allowing personal use and cultivation among adults of a certain age, say 18 or 21, then taxing and regulating commercial production and sales will remove the forbidden fruit allure and minimize negative effects on society.”
This is why having responsible adults “come out of the closet” to shatter stereotypes and provide positive role models is so important to him. He concedes that the 2001 Supreme Court ruling that shut down the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative from dispensing medical marijuana was a major setback that opened the door for Bush to lead raids all over the state. But he remains undaunted.
When asked what advice he has for other activists he replies: “Pace yourself for a long campaign; keep your personal scene together; study your foes to learn from their methods and remember who they really are; look to what you can help others achieve; speak with confidence from the heart but have facts to back yourself up.”
Professionally, he now spends most of his time testifying in various marijuana cases. Politically he works with Safe Access Now (SAN), a group trying to set medical standards in California that would allow three pounds of bud per patient and 100 square feet of combined garden canopy.
On the personal side, he has a lovely wife, an active social life, still writes and plays guitar and hopes to get back into painting and sculpting one day. Until then, you can find out more about his accomplishments, and even get involved by visiting his web site at www.chrisconrad.com .
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When my husband, Chris Conrad, and I became cannabis activists in 1988, it was the height of Reagan’s “Just Say No” and zero tolerance era. The Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986 enacted mandatory minimum sentences for drugs, so the arrest and incarceration rates were starting to amp up, and people who enjoyed pot were heading back into the cannabis closet.
Chris was at an election victory party for insurance reform the night George H. W. Bush won office. Smoking a celebratory joint in the parking lot with his political allies, Chris announced that it was time to do something about the marijuana laws. He felt it unfair that responsible pot smokers were, literally, being kept out in the cold. They stood in the November night, vulnerable to arrest, while their colleagues were indoors freely drinking alcohol. Feeling inspired by the injustice of the situation, he asked everyone to join him in a quick campaign for marijuana legalization.
“Are you crazy?” they retorted. “You will lose all credibility and destroy your reputation. Marijuana will never be legal. It can’t be done.”
Chris took that as a personal challenge and bet that he could make and implement a successful plan. Within weeks, he formulated and launched the Business Alliance for Commerce in Hemp (BACH) as a five-year strategy to legalize marijuana in North America. At the time, there were no hemp businesses except hemp birdseed and twine. BACH’s goal was to restore the perception of hemp for industrial use, allow medical marijuana, legalize personal adult-use and home grows, and regulate the commercial cannabis market.
Article continues at MerryJane.com
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MARIJUANA LUMINARIES ON 4/20
By David Downs, at SFGATE, April 20, 2019
The term “420” has evolved from a code for “time to toke up” among Northern California high school students in the late 1970s, to a marijuana subcultural meme, to a global rallying cry for cannabis-user liberation.
We talked to 10 noted growers, activists, retailers, and experts about 420’s meaning to them on the eve of the first 4/20 with commercial legalization in California.
How will you observe 4/20?
Chris Conrad, East Bay activist: Smoking out at Earth Day with my lovely wife, Mikki Norris.”
Has 420 lost its meaning now that cannabis is legal?
Conrad: “For the longest time, nobody knew what the mysterious 420 stood for anyway … until High Times revealed its secret. Then, after Senate Bill 420 was enacted, the number became enshrined in the broader vernacular. So I don’t think it’s lost its significance at all.”
Mikki Norris, East Bay activist: “Not at all. … We just need more public venues to party in style. That will require a change of the regulations, but we will get there.” —
Is 420 still used as a code word at all?
Norris: “Yes. We always notice when it’s 4:20 and start thinking it’s time to light one up. When an ad or someone says something is ‘420-friendly,’ it means that people allow or are open to cannabis use.”
How should 4/20 (4:20) be observed?
Click here to read the full story. Additional comments by Dale Gieringer, Debby Goldsberry, Aaron Justis, Jane West, Nikki Lastreto, Keith Stephenson, Jamie Warm, Mario Sherbinski.
Conrad: “I like to observe 4:20 when I can. The magic of 4:20 is to light up at the same time you know that thousands of other people are doing exactly the same thing. It creates a virtual community — we don’t have to see or hear or even know each other but we know that we all share this moment with cannabis and honor it with high honor. That feels pretty good.”
Norris: “”The best way to observe 4/20 is to be with lots of other cannabis consumers, sharing a joint or sacrament, listening to music, dancing, having great conversations, or enjoying some food — all the things cannabis enhances for us.
“It’s up to you about the daily observance of 4:20. Sometimes, when you still have a lot of work to do, it may be better to light up at 6:20 or 8:40 (two 420s). But, if you are done with your responsibilities, then observing 4:20 by smoking cannabis and taking a nice walk to enjoy nature is a wonderful thing to do.”
]]>“Getting trusted advice is critical.”
“We have decades of observational studies and case histories [demonstrating that cannabis has mental health benefits] and now early clinical studies showing that cannabis is a great benefit to trauma survivors,” says Chris Conrad, cannabis expert and author of Hemp for Health. Conrad cites additional reports that establish the mental health benefits of cannabis such as a 2014 study that concludes THC “reduces meth-induced brain damage” and a 2008 study that shows cannabinoids initiate “neonatal milk suckling response,” determining that “cannabis-based medicines should be developed to benefit infant failure to thrive.”
“People often substitute cannabis for anxiety medications and know for themselves if it does the job,” says Conrad. “People who suffer from severe mood swings often find that cannabis modulates their temperament. Likewise, a person who is having depression or anger management issues can often tell when and if cannabis helps them—even if not always how.”
“[Cannabis] gives such a deep, restful sleep and lets you forget the day’s cares and the stressful dreams that otherwise might keep you awake at night,” he says. “Just being rested is good for your mental health.”
Even Conrad recommends caution when replacing mental health medication with cannabis. “A person who is coping with mental health issues is not always the best judge of how cannabis is affecting their behavior. It’s important that the patient has someone they trust who is familiar with their history and will help them monitor its effect on their behavior,” says Conrad. Conrad notes that it’s important to be aware of “one size fits all” cures to things like insomnia: while compounds like CBD oil can supplement your regimen, it’s important to order from suppliers you can trust.
“If one form of cannabis is not working well enough, there are different forms and dosages from high THC macrodosing to CBD microdosing so getting trusted advice is critical.”
From “Can Cannabis Replace Your Mental Health Prescription” by Sean Arenas, Playboy.com April 4, 2019
]]>Yet since 2015, various bills have been introduced in Congress to legalize cannabis at the federal level — removing it from the schedule system altogether. The most recent was just introduced in January by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) — the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act, wittily numbered HR 420. (“420” has long been slang for getting high among cannabis aficionados.)
So there is some optimism in the ranks.
Chris Conrad, a longtime California cannabis advocate, actually thinks it can happen.
He forecasts: “House Democrats are already poised to pass cannabis de-scheduling legislation over to the Senate, where it either passes or gets attached to another bill and passes, then the president signs it and claims a victory in summer or winter of 2019. Unfortunately, Senator McConnell has authoritarian tendencies and could block legislation from getting a floor vote. But on the other hand, his role in de-scheduling industrial hemp suggests that he might be open to it.”
Conrad sees a second scenario as more likely: “McConnell will bottle House bills up in 2019 but let legalization pass the Senate in early 2020 as a way to grab the youth vote going into the fall elections or, at least, to take the issue away from Democrats to campaign on.”
Since 2015, various bills have been introduced in Congress to legalize cannabis at the federal level.
What Conrad sees as a third and perhaps most likely path is for the president to do it by executive order in the later part of 2020 “for that same political motive.”
]]>He adds, wryly: “The best tactic is always to play up to his vanity. For example, someone could name a strain of cannabis ‘Trump Gold’ and announce that it won a tremendous contest for the best, most terrific strain of cannabis in the world, maybe the best of all time. But nobody can get it because it’s illegal…unless The Donald orders the DEA to take marijuana out of the CSA. Plus, someone might point out that he personally could get a huge commission by licensing his name to it, being the most popular strain ever in the world and all.”
And some advocates are already anticipating how small growers will negotiate the transition to a federally legalized market. Kerry Reynolds is the organizer of Sohum Guild, a group of family-operated artisanal cannabis farms in southern Humboldt County, the heart of the Emerald Triangle.
Remember to read the whole article, it’s great!
— Excerpted from Bill Weinberg’s article in Paper magazine
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50-word bio
Chris Conrad has been instrumental in shaping cannabis reform globally since the 1980s, including hemp, medical marijuana and legalization / regulation. Author, educator, strategist, speaker, expert witness, consultant; his latest book is The Newbie’s Guide to Cannabis and the Industry. He teaches at Oaksterdam University and publishes ChrisConrad.com and theLeafOnline.com.
50-word bio
Internationally respected expert on industrial hemp, cannabis cultivation, processing and consumption, OU instructor Chris Conrad is a state and federal court-qualified expert witness who legally grew and processed marijuana in Europe and has given testimony hundreds of times. His latest book is The Newbie’s Guide to Cannabis and the Industry.
100-word bio
Chris Conrad, Oaksterdam University instructor, museum curator and internationally respected expert on industrial hemp, cannabis cultivation, processing and consumption, is a court-qualified expert witness who legally grew and processed marijuana in Europe and testified hundreds of times in state and federal courts. He wrote Hemp: Lifeline to the Future and Hemp for Health, one of the first books to promote CBD. His monograph, Cannabis Yields and Dosage, is a standard in the field and he co-founded theLeafOnline.com news service. His latest book is The Newbie’s Guide to Cannabis and the Industry. He was a prominent supporter of Prop. 64.
150-word bio
Chris Conrad is an internationally respected expert on industrial hemp, marijuana, cultivation, processing and religious, personal and medical use who has testified as an expert witness hundreds of times in state and federal courts. He legally grew and processed cannabis in Europe and curated the Hash-Marihuana-Hemp Museum (Amsterdam) and Oaksterdam Cannabis Museum (Oakland). His newest book is The Newbie’s Guide to Cannabis and the Industry. Hemp for Health was among the first to promote CBD and is translated into six languages. Cannabis Yields and Dosage is based on federal medical and cultivation research. He also wrote Hemp: Lifeline to the Future and, with wife Mikki Norris, Shattered Lives: Portraits From America’s Drug War. He has presented to the Int. Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics, California Assn. of Toxicologists, National Academy of Science, Uruguayan Ministry of Interior, International Pharmaceutical Academy, etc. He consulted with Drug Policy Action on Prop. 64.
200-word bio
Chris Conrad is an internationally respected expert on industrial hemp, marijuana cultivation, processing, religious, personal and medical use and a court-qualified expert witness who has testified more than 320 times in state, military and federal U.S. courts. He legally grew and processed marijuana in Europe in the 1990s and curated the Hash-Marihuana-Hemp Museum in Amsterdam and the Oaksterdam Cannabis Museum in Oakland. His newest book is The Newbie’s Guide to Cannabis and the Industry, with Jeremy Daw. Conrad is author of Hemp: Lifeline to the Future and Shattered Lives: Portraits From America’s Drug War, with wife Mikki Norris. His groundbreaking 1997 book, Hemp for Health, was among the first to promote CBD and has been translated into six languages, including Cannabis para la Salud. His research monograph, Cannabis Yields and Dosage, uses federal medical marijuana and cultivation research to explain principles of producing and consuming medical marijuana, as well as legal issues. He has presented to the National Academy of Science / Institute of Medicine, at the Fifth Int. Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics 2008, California Assn. of Toxicologists 2013, Uruguayan Ministry of Interior 2014, International Pharmaceutical Academy, Toronto, 2014 and 2015, etc. He consults with Drug Policy Action.
500 word bio
Chris Conrad is an internationally respected expert on industrial hemp, marijuana cultivation, processing, religious, personal and medical use and a court-qualified expert witness who has testified more than 320 times in state, military and federal U.S. courts. He legally grew and processed marijuana in Europe in the early 1990s and curated the Hash-Marihuana-Hemp Museum in Amsterdam and the Oaksterdam Cannabis Museum in Oakland CA. His newest book is The Newbie’s Guide to Cannabis and the Industry, with Jeremy Daw.
Conrad is author of Hemp: Lifeline to the Future, and other groundbreaking books. His book on medical marijuana, Hemp for Health, has been translated into six languages including as Cannabis para la Salud. His research monograph, Cannabis Yields and Dosage, uses federal medical marijuana and cultivation research to explain the fundamental principles of producing and consuming medical marijuana, as well as the legal issues. He presented for the National Academy of Science / Institute of Medicine, the Fifth Int. Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics 2008, California Assn. of Toxicologists 2013, an Uruguayan national ministry in 2014, International Pharmaceutical Academy in Toronto 2014 and 2015, among others. He and his wife Mikki Norris were volunteer coordinators for California’s Proposition 215 voter initiative that legalized medical marijuana in 1996, helped develop the state’s SB 420 legislation that created collectives, and cofounded Human Rights and the Drug War. Together with Virginia Resner, they co-authored Human Rights and the US Drug War and Shattered Lives: Portraits from America’s Drug War. He has worked with legal medical marijuana patients, caregivers and support groups; consults regularly with doctors, attorneys and legislators; and directs Safe Access Now www.safeaccessnow.net. Among his other accomplishments, Conrad designed and edited Jack Herer’s landmark book, The Emperor Wears No Clothes, and was cofounder and first president of the Hemp Industries Association, an editor of HempWorld magazine, contributor to Heads magazine, and editor in chief of the Oaksterdam News newspaper. Conrad has appeared in global, national and regional news media to comment on cannabis-related events. He portrayed the character Johnny Marijuanaseed on the PBS program The Nineties.
Conrad was editor in chief of The Oaksterdam News as well as of the West Coast Leaf, “the cannabis newspaper of record,” political science instructor at Oaksterdam University, co-founder of www.theLeafOnline.com online news service. A renowned expert witness, a legal consultant who teaches at CLE trainings for attorneys, CMEs for health care professionals and numerous events around the world, including Seattle Hempfest, Chris Conrad has an entertaining mix of humor and wit with his wisdom. You can hear him hosting Leaf fRadio on the Time4Hemp Broadcast Network, www.time4hemp.com, or contact him via www.ChrisConrad.com and get links to his books and other sites from there. He consults with Drug Policy Action.
Among other honors, Chris Conrad and his wife, Mikki Norris, have received awards from the Hemp Industries Association, the Drug Policy Alliance, National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, San Francisco Bay Guardian, Seattle HempFest, and most recently a lifetime achievement award from the Emerald Cup.
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