Mike Tyson's boxing career may be over, (we still can't unsee that Jake Paul fight in November 2024) but he's not going away anytime soon. The former heavyweight champ is reinventing himself as an activist, and he's on a mission to get President Donald Trump to make cannabis reform a priority for his administration.
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Tyson is leading a group called the “Coalition of Athletes and Entertainers Supporting President Trump’s Policy Objectives,” which also includes NBA players Kevin Durant and Allen Iverson as well as NFL players Antonio Brown and Dez Bryant. According to Fox News, the group sent a letter to Trump criticizing former President Joe Biden's failure to make sweeping changes to marijuana laws during his time in office.
They believe it's unfair that people continue to serve lengthy sentences for marijuana-related offenses while the legal industry continues to grow and they want the Trump administration to pick up the mantle.
"Today, people continue to serve lengthy federal sentences for conduct that is now legal in most states – which makes their continued incarceration not only cruel but absurd. After making sweeping promises to voters in 2020, former President Biden failed to deliver on his pledge to address marijuana-related injustices. Not only did he leave office without commuting the sentences of those incarcerated for marijuana, but in one of his final acts, he denied nearly every pending marijuana-related clemency application," the letter reads.
The group is also urging President Trump to reclassify marijuana, changing it to a Schedule III substance, meaning it has a "lower potential for physical and psychological dependence" than Schedule I or II substances, according to the DEA.
"Rescheduling marijuana would harmonize federal law with state policies, promote innovation, encourage research, and drive economic growth," the letter reads.
Tyson's group also wants the Trump administration to end "discriminatory banking practices" which can be roadblocks to maintaining legal cannabis businesses.
"Despite operating legally in 40 states, employing over 450,000 Americans, and generating more than $35 billion annually, these businesses face unjust barriers to banking services, and their employees struggle to obtain mortgages from traditional lenders," the letter read.
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