Working With Richard Lee, “The Mayor of Oaksterdam”

By Chris Conrad

I founded the Business Alliance for Commerce in Hemp in 1988 to create a pathway to legal use of and commerce in hemp and marijuana and created a network of activists and entrepreneurs around the country to make that vision a reality. Mikki and I moved to Spain in 1991, where I wrote my first book, Hemp: Lifeline to the Future and where we first read about Richard Lee and his shop, Legal Marijuana the Hemp Store. When we returned to the USA, we were eager to meet Richard and drove to Texas to connect. At the first Hemp Industries Association meeting in 1994, Richard hosted a BACH breakout session to talk about legalization of marijuana, not just industrial hemp. A year later, he came to California with Amy Doktor to help us with the Human Rights 95 exhibit and he moved to California soon after we passed Prop 215, hoping to bring the Amsterdam experience to America. Once Rich planted roots in Oakland, the city was changed for good. He grew for OCBC, founded the Bulldog Coffeeshop, helped define the Oaksterdam district, sponsored Measure Z to make cannabis use, cultivation and sales Oakland’s lowest law enforcement priority and became a  member of its advisory board. Together we founded Oaksterdam News and the Oaksterdam Cannabis Museum. When he founded Oaksterdam University Richard brought me on as a faculty member for the very first day of classes. He founded the Oaksterdam nursery, SR71 / Blue Skies Coffeeshop and sponsored street parties and campaign events. His sponsorship of Prop 19 was ahead of its time, led to the passage of Prop 64 and changed the legalization discussion forever and for the better. We’ll never forget that day of blistering rage and disbelief when federal marshalls came to Oakland to shut his operations down. Richard left his mark on the city and the world. Equally important, Richard was our dear friend and colleague over the years. We hated to see him go off to Texas but once Richard got an idea in his head, he was hard to stop.

Now that he’s passed away, we will always be grateful for all he’s done and for his companionship, generosity and support through the years. We honor Richard with high honor! May we all emulate his courage, commitment and integrity.

Written with warmest memories and sincere condolences to all from his friends and allies, Chris Conrad and Mikki Norris