Skip to Main Content
Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

How to leave 4/20 on a high note

How to leave 4/20 on a high note

By Adri Pray / April 20, 2023

Rejoice! The 2023rd April 20th celebration is nearly upon us! In honor of Thursday’s holiday, here’s an easy-to-read guide on how to participate...

Illustration by Ryan Yau

Let’s put it bluntly: all drugs should be legal

By Meg Richards / April 19, 2023

It’s 4/20, a day for the predominately white students of Emerson College to ditch class and smoke in the Boston Common, without a care in the world and...

Students applaud Biden marijuana pardons

Students applaud Biden marijuana pardons

By Maddie Khaw / November 9, 2022

Last month, President Joe Biden pardoned thousands of people convicted of marijuana possession at the federal level. Emerson students and experts alike...

"Hempfest" in Boston Common

Marijuana festival hits Boston Common

By Mariyam Quaisar and Bailey Allen / September 25, 2021

Emerson students grabbed their stashes and lined Boston Common on Saturday, joining the crowds gathered for a fair of marijuana and cannabis-related paraphernalia. The...

Three weed dealers––Jamie, Alex, and John––who spoke with The Beacon on the condition of anonymity, discussed their life as dealers on campus and how it impacts their customers.

Let’s Be Really Blunt: Student dealers on what it’s like being “The Plug”

By Campbell Parish and Karissa Schaefer / May 1, 2021

College students, often overwhelmed by the pressures of schoolwork, social life, and on-campus extracurricular commitments, not to mention jobs, have increasingly...

 Even as white and Black people use cannabis at similar rates, Black people are 3.64 times more likely to be arrested on charges of weed possession, according to a 2020 ACLU report.

The luxury of neighborhood dispensaries deny America’s racist cannabis criminalization

By Joshua Sokol / May 1, 2021

In 1936, a film titled “Reefer Madness” hit the silver screen. Originally titled “Tell Your Children,” the black & white cinema explored the...

Smokey Coffeeshop is just one of the many social cannabis consumption spaces in Amsterdam.

Massachusetts must open social cannabis consumption spaces

By Clarah Grossman / May 1, 2021

There we were, three college seniors in pajamas on the back porch, huddled close together in the Boston cold, sharing a celebratory joint after one of...

New England Treatment Access (NETA) in Brookline.

Boston dispensaries turn a new leaf amid pandemic

By Ann E. Matica / May 1, 2021

Pure Oasis, the first recreational dispensary to open in a major city on the East Coast, opened its doors for the first time in Boston on March 9, 2020,...

New England Treatment Access in Brookline began selling cannabis after opening in March. Beacon Archives.

Separate the college’s policies on CBD and THC

By Editorial Board / October 9, 2019

On Saturday, The Beacon reported that a group of college administrators are “discussing and finalizing policies” regarding the on-campus usage of CBD,...

Editorial: Nearby dispensary opening offers opportunities for responsible consumption

Editorial: Nearby dispensary opening offers opportunities for responsible consumption

By Editorial Board / March 21, 2019

At issue: students’ cannabis use Our take: cannabis can benefit students of age   The closest dispensary for medical and recreational cannabis...

Resident Assistants leave Cannabis Scent notices under dorm room doors after pinpointing the smell of marijuana on a residence hall floor. Anissa Gardizy / Beacon Staff

New procedure to deal with cannabis on-campus

By Anissa Gardizy / October 18, 2018

The Office of Community Standards and Student Conduct updated the way Resident Assistants handle incidents involving the smell of cannabis in room(s) by...

Ching-Bush cites active communication with students as the most important step in any sanctioning process.  Photo courtesy of Beacon Archives.

Campus life gears student conduct programs towards conversation

By Kaitlyn Bryson / September 27, 2018

The college shaped its alcohol and marijuana peer-led programs around conversation and education rather than punishment. The Office of Community Standards...

This month, Emerson Polling Society has surveyed marijuana opinions nationwide.

More than half of Americans support marijuana legalization, says ECPS poll

By Grace Griffin / March 27, 2018

The Emerson Polling Society made a name for itself by receiving national attention for polling the 2016 presidential election. This month, their polling...