‹‹ Colorado Matters

Cannabis business owners in Colorado anxiously await federal action with the hope that it’s just the beginning

Listen Now
15min 36sec
Woman standing in front of a mural with one foot against the wall
Courtesy Wanda James
Wanda James owns the dispensary Simply Pure in Denver.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order in December that his administration says is aimed at reshaping federal marijuana policy. The order directs the Justice Department to speed up the process of moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act. Cannabis business owners in Colorado are still waiting for that to happen, and hope that it's just the beginning of eased restrictions that will lead to full legalization of marijuana. Wanda James co-owns Simply Pure, a recreational cannabis dispensary located in Denver’s Highlands neighborhood. She is widely recognized as the first African American to legally own a marijuana dispensary in the United States. She also opened the Apothecary of Colorado alongside her husband, Scott Durrah in 2009, making them the first Black licensees in the country to own a dispensary, cultivation facility, and edible company.