Cannabis consumption lounges are offering a safe space for BIPOC consumers to smoke weed. 

Cannabis consumption lounges are offering a safe space for BIPOC consumers to smoke weed. YPulse research found that over a third of BIPOC young consumers have tried or experimented with marijuana. And it’s no secret that cannabis has been used “as a prop to incarcerate Black and Brown people,” and is still being weaponized against BIPOC communities today. But for centuries, people have gone to clubs or lounges to consume cannabis with others. In Paris, there used to be “psychedelic-induced meetings” at the Le Club des Hachichins. Meanwhile, “Tea Pads” were born in cities across the U.S. as a response to the racism and segregation against African Americans at other speakeasies and clubs during the ‘30s and ‘40s. Trend experts predicted that consumption lounges would take off this year—and as weed becomes legalized in more states in the present, more cannabis consumption establishments, including clubs, lounges, hotels, and cafés have popped up. Many of them have created safe environments for consumers of all ethnicities and experience levels. Having these spaces available destigminizes the negative stereotype of marijuana and opens the doors for canna-curious consumers, especially BIPOC individuals, who might be “too intimidated to visit a dispensary on their own.” (Rolling Stone)