Several firsts in history were recently accomplished with the inauguration of the Good Grades marijuana dispensary in Queens, New York. It is the first retail marijuana dispensary to operate in Queens among the first six retail marijuana dispensaries in New York State, and it is also the first woman-owned retail marijuana dispensary to get financial backing from the state’s social equity investment fund.
Nonetheless, co-owner Michael James Jr. claimed that a “pivotal moment” for the establishment of the firm came with the shop’s first client.
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Donovan Richards, the president of the Queens Borough, bought something from the storefront on Jamaica Avenue initially.
Extasy James, the shop’s other co-owner, said on Monday that the event “killed a lot of stereotypes” and that it “was very ideal.” She said Richards purchased gummies.
Extasy James described the storefront’s big launch in Jamaica’s famed retail district as “unbelievable” and “high-energy.”
She noted, “It was so refreshing, and it was so fulfilling, and it was rewarding.” She added, “I also felt a lot of love, and that’s more important. Not just from family and friends, but also from the staff, from security, from everyone.”
The New York State Social Equity Cannabis Investment Fund, a public-private partnership that provided refurbished retail premises, provided assistance for the opening. Good Grades originally began as a brief pop-up, giving time for staff training and funding. Following that, it will close for final construction before opening permanently, according to a statement from New York Governor Kathy Hochul.
The state’s Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary licensing scheme is how the James cousins obtained their license. Only those who have been involved in the court system, or who have been previously convicted of marijuana-related offenses, and their families are eligible to apply. This program was designed to help those who are most impacted by marijuana prohibition.
Michael James first assisted his clients with the licensing application as an attorney and a legal champion for minority company owners. But, due to the fact that other family members—including Extasy James’ father, who was deported for a cannabis offense—have dealt with the criminal justice system, Michael James chose to apply alongside his cousin.
He claimed that marijuana ” goes from, you know, being literally a tool to over police our communities to now a tool of economic prosperity.” He further added, “The window of opportunity for poor, Black and brown communities, minority communities, to now benefit from it is just substantial.”
The dispensary represents a significant transformation for the area. Until recreational marijuana use became legal in 2021, Jamaica, a neighborhood that is home to three police precincts (the 105th, the 103rd, and the 113th), has traditionally seen disproportionate cannabis criminality.
According to a 2018 analysis from the Manhattan district attorney’s office using data examined by Politico, the 113th Precinct, an area of New York City that is primarily Black and Afro-Caribbean, has had a higher rate of cannabis criminalization throughout the years compared to other communities. According to the study, there were 281 marijuana complaints and 280 arrests in South Jamaica, as opposed to 136 complaints and just 56 arrests in the 84th Precinct, which encompasses whiter, richer communities like Brooklyn Heights and Boerum Hill.
Blacks and Hispanics made up 71% and 80%, respectively, of cannabis-related arrests in Flushing and Forest Hills in 2018, while making up just 20% of those regions’ populations, the survey found. Racial discrepancies in marijuana arrests were also evident within Queens neighborhoods.
Extasy James claimed that while visiting family in Queens or visiting the Bronx as a child, she saw families torn apart by marijuana-related charges.
“There’s a lot of families, even grandmas and grandpas, where they didn’t make enough money,” she remarked. “So they would sell cannabis on the side, and they would get in trouble. A lot of families would be deported, and it just broke up a lot of homes.”
According to Michael James, it seemed strange to launch the dispensary close to his childhood home.
“I lived five minutes away. My father had a business here,” he noted. “I watched businesses on this same avenue for years. I know it like the back of my hand. So it’s really full circle. This feels like where we’re supposed to be.”
According to Michael James, the dispensary intends to give back to the neighborhood as a family-run enterprise by educating customers and working with nearby charitable organizations to hold giveaways and community drives.
“We really just want to be a role model in his community,” he remarked. “We really do, and we want to just set the standard.”
Extasy James claimed that the opening conveys an inspirational message to the community as well as her family.
“We want to inspire the community that there are second chances and that dreams can come true,” she noted. “Anything is possible.”
