Who can sell cannabis legally?

But while everyone is eager to indulge as seller and consumer, the groups who made cannabis what it is today are often shut out – some marred by past cannabis convictions and most unable to meet the high costs associated with licensing.

"We still have a lot of barriers that, you know, us equity recipients can't get over," says Edgar Cruz, a hopeful cannabis entrepreneur in Long Beach, California. According to Cruz, purchasing property for a cannabis business in Long Beach can cost $1 million, and that's just the first step of the licensing application process.

Cruz is one of the hundreds of social equity applicants in California who have struggled to receive the necessary support to cross the finish line. But after three years as an applicant, Cruz has put his brand to the side so he can create lasting change for fellow cannabis equity applicants.