Welcome to Oaksterdam! Epicenter of the Marijuana Legalization Movement

Located in the pot-friendly "Oaksterdam" section of Oakland, California, Oaksterdam University aims to teach its students the fundamentals of growing and marketing marijuana.

The curriculum covers everything from law and politics to business and horticulture. The university also provides training for entrepreneurs in the pot industry as well as several dispensaries, a Bulldog Coffeeshop, and a gift shop. University founder Richard Lee tells Reason.tv that he and other Bay Area activists were inspired by the example of Amsterdam, a city with some of the most liberal marijuana policies in the world. As he put it, "We went to Amsterdam and said you know, hey, we can do this here; it shows it can work."

Oaksterdam University is one of the major sponsors of the "Tax and Regulate" initiative that will be on the ballot in California this November. If passed, marijuana would be legalized and regulated like alcohol.

Produced by Paul Feine; shot by Alex Manning, edited by Hawk Jensen and Alex Manning.

Approximately 8 minutes long. 

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Comments

[Rhayader]

Nice. The tour guide's not too shabby either.

[A is Awesome]

OH I get it, it's like AMSTERDAM, but with OAK in the name! Hilarious!

Keep the weed articles coming, after all it's Bob Marley's death anniversary!

[tenletters]

Marley is dead?? WTF??? Next you'll tell me Elvis is constipated.

[A is Awesome]

Constipated and DEAD!!!

[Devil without a cause]

This guy IS the reason the FBI should be slashed to the bone marrow. And after the last 30 years of ruined lives by law enforcement and you people are willing to give them tax money from the only business left in Cali? Grow opps?

Oh. And don't forget. If you don't give these guys fresh baked cookies and pat them on the back telling them what "finnnne jobs their doing" guys like you will be the ones to paint us up as terrorist, drug kingpins, and if that doesn't work it will be sex with little girls then sex with little boys. And when that doesn't work? "Oh well. See ya again next week."

Crash the US Dollar and guys like these will be TOAST.

[roguepatriot]

Great video. Great cause!

That said, Amsterdam isn't a good example of drug decriminalization, however.

Portugal had decriminalized all drugs years ago and it's worked out great. More attention should be focused there.

[Rhayader]

What's wrong with the Amsterdam model, apart from its refusal to provide for legal methods of production and supply?

We're not talking about decriminalization here, we're talking about legalized production and sale. Pot's been decriminalized in Cali since the 70's.

[Paul]

"Tax and Regulate" initiative that will be on the ballot in California this November. If passed, marijuana would be legalized and regulated like alcohol.

So in Washington, that means the State would have exclusive account.

[Rhayader]

Good. Bring on the conflicts, it's the only way anybody on the federal level will even look at this. Let them sue the state in true drug warrior fashion and see where it gets them.

[CAB]

Hitler was born today all those years ago. What strange coincidences.

[tenletters]

Yeah....and Marley died. FUCK!

[heller]

4/20!!!!!!

[tkwelge]

I'm really high happy 420 reason!!!!!

[OhioOrrin]

who comes-up w all those stupid names for weed varities? i mean white rhino for pete's sake. is it like the growers get high, then one sees a roach & says "lets call it big ass crawly"? >should be a number indicating thc level.

[Amakudari]

Yeah, I used to work three blocks from the place. It used to be this run-down pharmacy, and probably half the real estate on that stretch down Broadway is vacant, so they really are good neighbors simply by occupying the place and keeping a clean storefront. And it's convenient if you need to go right across the street to Gold Teeth Master or Weird Church-Looking Structure.

But seriously, let's keep arresting people.

[Scarpe Nike]

is good

[sd]

sd