4/20 Guide 2023 - The Daily Orange
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4/20 Guide 2023




'Legal paradise': central New York's first licensed dispensary is open


By: Dominic Chiappone | Asst. News Editor

After being arrested in Brooklyn for marijuana possession when he was 23, businessman William Durham has opened the first legal operational cannabis dispensary in the central New York region as one of the 28 initial CAURD license recipients with prior marijuana-related convictions.

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Syracuse Hemporium looks to educate people on CBD, navigate businesses through new industry


By: Nate Lechner | Asst. Culture Editor

After an injury forced Jim Charon to look for alternative options to mainstream medicine, Charon turned to CBD to find a remedy to his pain. After finding success with CBD, Charon began researching and learning more about the substance. Since, he has started his own licensed CBD retailer, Syracuse Hemporium.

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SU's cannabis studies program offers students experience in the emerging market


By: Kelly Matlock | Asst. Copy Editor

Since the introduction of a cannabis studies program in 2021, Dr. June Chin has been educating students on the science and importance cannabis can have in the medical world. She was motivated to pursue an educational career after realizing more people could benefit from the drug.

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Selling what they're smoking: Here are 4 hip-hop artists with their own lines of cannabis


By: Josh Feldstein | Music Columnist

Marijuana has long been intertwined with hip-hop and rap music. Beyond just being a topic of many tracks, some rappers have taken the step to create their own businesses within the burgeoning cannabis industry. Check out these four rappers that have diversified their businesses that sell what they're smoking.

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A look at the ultimate 4/20 movie watchlist


By: Teddy Hudson | Movie Columnist

Nothing goes better with a nice doobie than a movie. Check out these ten films that were either made by, for or with cannabis lovers and and enthusiasts.

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Sellers, growers shape New York's new legal cannabis industry post-legalization


By: Neil Vijayan | Asst. Digital Editor

After decades of operating illicitly, the cannabis industry is taking a new shape as dispensary owners and cultivators build up a new legal enterprise across New York state.

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Incarceration for marijuana needs to catch up with legalization


By: Rainu George | Senior Staff Writer

Despite marijuana legalization spreading across the country, incarceration rates for related offenses are still disproportionately heightened in communities of color. Legalization needs to result in pardon for those still incarcerated to lead a life they deserve.

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Weed isn't a gateway drug, thinking so is harmful


By: Conor Sarasin | Columnist

We've been told that marijuana is a gateway drug for years but there is little research to back up this claim. The War on Drugs led, by former President Richard Nixon in 1971, has caused devastating repercussions on the Black and Brown community — and 52 years later, they still feel the effects.

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Letter From the Editor:


Dear readers,


Since New York legalized recreational marijuana in March 2021, 4/20 does not have to be celebrated behind closed doors. The legalization process continues to roll out retail licenses to businesses owned by people with prior marijuana-related convictions, including The William Jane dispensary. Other stores, like the Syracuse Hemporium, have been selling cannabis products, mostly CBD, to end the stigma around cannabis. There has also been a push to increase communication and collaboration between new marijuana retailers to ensure the stability and the future of the industry. In that same strain, institutions like Syracuse University have begun to implement programs in their schools to educate students and professionals on the physical and mental benefits marijuana can have. Beyond education, there has been a strong push to ensure marijuana is decriminalized nationwide and to stop the disproportionate amount of Black and Brown men imprisoned for possession and use of the drug. An important change in public perception that would help move this legislation along is to stop the outdated and contorted view that marijuana is a gateway drug. Marijuana has also entered all aspects of our life, including pop culture, music and movies that are made about, with and for marijuana. As we wake (and bake) on 4/20 and ensure fairness and equity surrounding marijuana, I am reminded of something a friend said to me on my first 4/20: weed is for the people.


Anthony Bailey

Culture Editor



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