NEW JERSEY – Imani Oakley, Esq. former Legislative Director of NJ Working Families, joins #EyesOnNJ to host her 16th episode of “Upfront Now!” today at 5:00PM.
Imani will touch upon
- Discussing Marijuana Legalization
- Interview with Leo Bridgewater, Former Army Specialist
Leo Bridgewater
Leo Bridgewater was an Army Specialist who served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and worked with some of the Army’s highest ranked officers as a communications liaison before retiring with an honorable discharge. Having struggled with PTSD himself, he was acutely aware of the absurdity of treating his condition with opiates and anxiety medications, which only masked symptoms and made him feel more like a zombie than anything else.
“The V.A. passes out pills like they were candy,” he said. Despite a federal policy allowing veterans to keep their V.A. benefits if they opt to use cannabis in states where it’s legal, Leo is not convinced that openly talking about PTSD or cannabis won’t cost military personnel their security clearances or other military benefits. He’s also concerned that most V.A. doctors are still either unwilling or ill-equipped to recommend cannabis as an option for veterans with PTSD. With cannabis therapy, Leo said, “I was no longer suffering with PTSD, I was living with PTSD.”
After learning that several veteran friends took their own lives in suicide, Leo became an activist for cannabis. He was one of three veterans asked to testify before the New Jersey State Assembly, when an amendment adding PTSD as a qualifying condition to the state’s medical marijuana law was under consideration. He has since traveled throughout the United States advocating on behalf of veterans in other states’ legislative hearings and speaking at events. He is also a plaintiff in a lawsuit against Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the Department of Justice over the unconstitutional classification of cannabis as a Schedule 1 Controlled Substance. He invites veterans to connect with him through his nonprofit organization, New Jersey Cannabis Commission and at Facebook/LeoBridgewater.
Imani Oakley, Esq.
Imani R. Oakley, Esq was the Legislative Director & Regional Organizer for New Jersey Working Families. Imani is also an alum of New Leaders Council-New Jersey and is currently fulfilling the role of NLC-NJ Institute Co-Chair where she is responsible for constructing and facilitating a six-month curriculum for New Jersey’s emerging leaders.
Recently, Imani was voted-in as the Political Director for the Young Democrats of America’s Woman’s Caucus. Imani also currently holds the position of Northern Vice Chair for the New Jersey Young Democrats and was previously the Executive Chair of the Essex County Young Democrats. Imani is the former Deputy Chief of Staff for Assemblywoman Britnee N. Timberlake and has also served as a Constituent Advocate for Senator Cory A. Booker where her portfolio consisted of affordable housing, mortgages, taxes, student loans, consumer protection, pensions, and postal service issues. In 2018, Imani was honored to be the Keynote Speaker for the Montclair Branch NAACP’s 102nd Thurgood Marshall Freedom Fund Dinner and Awards Ceremony where she spoke about the theme “Face the Hate and VOTE” with an emphasis on protecting the voting process for the nation’s most vulnerable communities.
Imani has also been a strong advocate for criminal justice reform. In 2017, Imani was a panel speaker for the 2017 International Drug Policy Reform Conference where she spoke about her experience in effecting D.C.’s local marijuana legalization laws and what students can do to effect drug policy reform on their campus and in their communities. Furthering her endeavors to create positive change in drug policy reform, Imani was invited to participate in the 2016 Minority Cannabis Business Association’s Policy Summit where she helped draft model legislation for the legalization of marijuana in a manner that promotes access to the legal cannabis industry for marginalized communities.
As an unyielding advocate for the systemically powerless, in 2015, Imani was a legal observer during the anti-police brutality protests in Baltimore, Maryland, where she ensured that the First Amendment rights of protestors were not infringed upon. During this same year, Imani spent her summer working for the South African non-profit, Ndifuna Ukwazi, where she collected affidavits on property and sewage conditions from South African communities that suffered under Apartheid and are still experiencing Apartheid’s harsh effects, even in its aftermath.
Imani earned her Bachelor’s degree from Howard University, a Master of Arts degree from New York University, and a Juris Doctor degree from Howard University School of Law. While enrolled in law school, Imani was enrolled in the Legislative Legal Clinic and drafted policy reports for non-profit organizations focused on criminal justice reform. As the Captain of Oral Advocacy for the Goler Teal Butcher International Moot Court Team at Howard, Imani distinguished herself among national and international competitors as the 2016 Best Oralist at the Susan J. Ferrell Intercultural Human Rights Moot Court Competition. Through her passion for both policy and her community, Imani hopes to continue to be a servant of the people and a trailblazer for progress.
