The administration is describing the pardons as the largest state pardon to date. The governor’s action regarding cases relating to use of paraphernalia make Maryland the first state to take such action, his office said.

The pardons will forgive low-level marijuana possession charges for an estimated 100,000 people, according to The Washington Post, which first reported on the order Sunday night.

Moore plans to sign the executive order Monday morning in the state Capitol in Annapolis with Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown in attendance.

Recreational cannabis was legalized in Maryland in 2023 after voters approved a constitutional amendment in 2022 with 67% of the vote. Maryland decriminalized possession of personal use amounts of cannabis on Jan. 1, 2023. Now, 24 states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational cannabis.

“The Moore-Miller Administration is committed to promoting social equity and ensuring the fair and equitable administration of justice,” the governor’s office said. “Because the use and possession of cannabis is no longer illegal in the state, Marylanders should not continue to face barriers to housing, employment, or educational opportunities based on convictions for conduct that is no longer illegal.”

Brown, a Democrat, described the pardons as “certainly long overdue as a nation” and “a racial equity issue.”

To read this article in its entirety, visit The Grio

A study from the Pew Research Center found that majorities of Black people believe in ‘racial conspiracy theories,’ specifically that American institutions are designed to hold them back. Pew defines “racial conspiracy theories” as “the suspicions that Black adults might have about the actions of U.S. institutions based on their personal and collective historical experiences with racial discrimination.” 

(After the study was published, Pew later added an editor’s note to its report stating that the study is under review, and using the term “racial conspiracy theories” was “not the best choice” to make. “Black Americans’ doubts about the fairness of U.S. institutions are accompanied by suspicion. How Black Americans think those institutions impact their ability to thrive is worthy of study, and that’s the purpose of this survey,” the Pew editor said.)

To read this article in its entirety, visit The Grio

“Listen, we’re getting back into basketball,” O’Neal said during Reebok’s annual brand summit in March, per The New York Times. “And I want everyone in here to understand there are no excuses. Everyone needs to be 100% in on this because I’m 100% in on this.”

In October, the brand named O’Neal president of basketball and announced another NBA legend, Allen Iverson, as vice president. Both Iverson and O’Neal have history with Reebok, particularly during its heyday in basketball apparel during the ’90s and early ’00s. Reebok hopes to recapture that era’s success with O’Neal and Iverson, who each played a major role back then.

To read the article in its entirety, visit TheGrio

While Black entrepreneurs fight through systemic systemic disparities, limited access to capital and multiple barriers to entry, many fall victim to their respective industries’ pitfalls, forcing them to shut down before ever taking off. It’s a struggle that’s currently playing out in beauty aisles across America. Despite a significant increase in Black-owned brands within major retailers like Sephora, Ulta Beauty and Target, founders still face difficulty in scaling their businesses. 

“Understand there are Black brands with eight figures in revenue that cannot raise money. There are many of us with retail deals on the table and cannot raise money — literally me and my founder tribe,” said Devin McGhee Kirkland, co-founder of adaptogenic beauty brand Deon Libra, on Instagram. “Ulta, Sephora, Target, Walmart, [Urban Outfitters], Anthropologie, and more are knocking at all our doors, and none of us can make the commitment because the cash isn’t there. So, scale where?!” 

To read the article in its entirety, visit TheGrio

On Thursday, Theresa Claiborne, who became the first Black woman to be a pilot in the United States Air Force, retired from flying after 34 years with United Airlines.

“I’ve had a great career,” Claiborne told CNN Travel before she set off for her final flight. “And it’s time for me to park the brakes for the final time on a big airplane.”

The trailblazing aviator also turned 65 on Sunday.

“Birthday mood, I’m 65 y’all!” she wrote in the caption of a post on Instagram.

Claiborne’s aviation career began on June 20, 1981, when she was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force, having belonged to the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps in college. When she graduated from her flight training, she didn’t realize she had made history.

“I’m very happy I didn’t know because I think that at the age of 22, I don’t think I would have been able to handle that pressure,” she noted in a recent video by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association.