Although Massachusetts voters approved recreational marijuana by ballot vote more than two years ago, the rollout of pot shops across the state has been notoriously slow. Boston has now given community host agreements to five such businesses, one of which — Pure Oasis in Dorchester — recently received a provisional license from the state. If the store opens in the coming months as planned, it would be the first from the state’s so-called ‘economic empowerment’ track. The program aims to ensure that communities of color that were disproportionately targeted by the war on drugs can participate in the now-legal marijuana industry, which still remains largely white. Pure Oasis co-owner Kobie Evans joined Jim Braude to talk about his success thus far — and his frustrations that the program hasn’t yet yielded more results.
