Watching American Pot Story: Oaksterdam screen on the closing night of the Oakland International Film Festival 2022 at the beautiful Fox Theater, I felt transported back in time to when California was the only state with legalized medical marijuana and a flash point for cannabis reform. Then, San Francisco Bay Area was abuzz with activists, entrepreneurs, and empathetic elected officials.
The film picks up the storyline at a pivotal moment of the legalization saga, more than a decade after CAN activist Jeff Jones, Texas entrepreneur Richard Lee and a dozen or more medical marijuana ‘buyers clubs’ took root in late 1990s Oakland. Alongside its quaint Victorian neighborhoods, dispensaries clustered downtown like Dutch coffeeshops. Inspired by the Amsterdam model, Lee opened a string of businesses: Oaksterdam Bulldog Coffeeshop, Oaksterdam Gift Shop, Oaksterdam Seed Bank, etc., and became known as the Mayor of Oaksterdam. The city decided to rein in the scene and license only four spread-out dispensaries, specifically denouncing the Oaksterdam moniker. In response, Richard and I launched the Oaksterdam News cannabis newspaper. Lee sponsored Measure Z, which rewrote the city police policy to designate marijuana use, cultivation, and sales as law enforcement’s lowest priority, and celebrated by reopening the Bulldog and adding Oaksterdam Nursery.
Lee plowed his earnings back into his businesses and activism. He also invested in neighborhood events, community spirit, and public education. After visiting Amsterdam Cannabis College, Lee quipped to a reporter in 2007 that he was thinking of starting his own college to train the cannabis industry. When his comment appeared in print, phone calls started pouring in, and Oaksterdam University was born. But OU became a huge undertaking that drew thousands to its doors as he hired staff from locals and students. In a few years, Dale Sky was OU’s chancellor, and Jones was her boyfriend. Lee decided it was time to make his statewide move. He put together an advisory group, hired campaign managers, and funded Proposition 19 in 2010.
That’s when filmmakers Dan Katzir and Ravit Markus suddenly realized, “They’re going to legalize marijuana in California!” So, they decided they had to document the election. Little did they know that the process would take years to fully unfold. Along the way, they rode the inside rail on a roller coaster of optimism, setbacks, hard work, heartbreak, and victory. They made a film depicting the legalization movement’s resilience, tenacity, and humanity.
The documentary focuses on the friendship and work of two people, Richard and Dale, who adds “Jones” to her name when she marries Jeff amid the Prop 19 campaign. Lee expected other funders to join in his election strategy but found himself holding the bag for pretty much the whole campaign. He and Dale buckle down to take on the role of spokespersons as the initiative rides high in the polls. The world is suddenly taking cannabis legalization, taxation, and regulation seriously.
Their camera gave the filmmakers access to painful moments, like when a band of stoners mutinies against the initiative. And unexpected turns, as when Lee’s mom comes from Texas to help and becomes a celebrity in her own right; and touching moments, as when Dale reflects on the life turns that carried her to this unusual career – a role model for marijuana moms. With dwindling resources and slipping poll numbers, the Oaksterdam community rallies for its final drive to the finish line. These intimate glimpses make American Pot Story a socio-political and deeply personal testimonial that highlights a supportive and loving friendship in a sea of personalities and events at the core of the initiative campaign.
As anyone familiar with cannabis history knows, Prop 19 lost. Richard hosted and I curated the Oaksterdam Cannabis Museum in its old campaign headquarters. A year and a half later, federal agents waged a devastating raid on all of Lee’s businesses. They even seized six plants we had growing in the medical marijuana exhibit and shut down OU. … For about a day, that is. In an amazing and very delicate balancing act, Jones rescues both the museum and the college. OU rises like a cannabis phoenix from the glowing embers of Prop 19 and the raid, training thousands more people to work for the industry, legalization, and regulation. It all culminates in the legalization of marijuana in state after state, including California, in 2016.
The filmmakers weave an intricate overlay of stories: A city and cannabis community that become a staging ground for reform. An initiative that loses at the ballot box but sets the stage for wins two years later in Colorado and Washington and from there around the world. A man who risks everything and pays a high price for his idealism. A woman who works beside him and carries forward to see his dream realized. And a historic change distilled into a friendship of two heroic and driven people.
It was truly apropos to sit in the Fox Theater, a centerpiece of Oaksterdam, and view the film. Mayor Libby Schaaf, who received an award for helping shape Oakland’s cannabis-friendly persona, introduced the film at its September gala screening. Governor Gavin Newsom, who backed Prop 64, the adult use initiative that won six years after Prop. 19 fell short, sent a video message posted online at vimeo.com/758107041/9f0231550d. Oaksterdam University hosted the after-party and announced a new foundation to support equity in hiring for the cannabis industry and presented awards to State AG Bob Bonta, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Cal NORML director Dale Gieringer, and journalist David Downs. A special award was given to Brittney Griner, imprisoned for cannabis in Russia. A discussion panel featured the filmmakers and honorees.
American Pot Story: Oaksterdam will be shown in the festival circuit before its upcoming release. The best place for updates and showings is at americanpotstory.com and on social media.
