The ’Mayor of Oaksterdam’ Fought the Man to Free the Weed

Richard Lee's life changed forever in 1990 when he slipped on a catwalk while setting up the lights for an Aerosmith concert, suffering a spinal injury that left him paralyzed from the waist down. A Texas native raised by conservative Republican parents, he would subsequently dedicate his life to educating his family, the government, and ultimately the entire country about medical cannabis.

Along the way, he transformed an eight-block stretch of Oakland, California into a weed autonomous zone lovingly known as Oaksterdam. It included his two cannabis coffeeshops, a medical cannabis dispensary, his political headquarters, and the 30,000 square foot main campus of Oaksterdam University, the country’s first trade school dedicated to training people for careers in the legal cannabis industry.

Richard then put up his own money to run a state-wide marijuana legalization initiative in California. Not long after, the Feds came to shut him down, and the city of Oakland rose up in his defense.

Richard Lee passed away this week. May he Rest in Plants...

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