Drew Dixon
A longtime advocate for legalized medical marijuana is moving from activist to entrepreneur in the industry.
Roz McCarthy, founder of Minorities for Medical Marijuana (M4MM) in Florida nine years ago, has joined the retailer and said the transition into selling a new product she calls “Black Buddha” with Trulieve is a natural evolution.
In an online conference with media outlets, McCarthy said she founded the activist organization nine years ago as her son had sickle cell anemia and was using many different drugs to cope with the condition. She found that marijuana was actually the best treatment for him.
“I wanted my son to have the opportunity to be able to have access to medical marijuana from a medical perspective and not be judged or not feel a stigma,” she said. “I started M4MM in Florida where I’m from and focused on policy.”
She started M4MM in 2016, the same year Florida voters approved a referendum legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes.
McCarthy said her path to becoming a partner in the medical marijuana business started in 2022 when she was involved in a vehicle accident that resulted in several medical conditions. She then started working on the Black Buddha brand of cannabis that she said has helped her with traumatic brain injury, whiplash and concussion conditions.
“I felt like I was going to die. I was just in misery,” McCarthy said.
She called a friend who was already involved in the marijuana industry, and through both self-healing procedures and use of cannabis, she felt connected to the religious spiritual figure Buddha.
“Buddha on the surface means enlightenment. For me, I had an enlightenment period where I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, had it not been for this plant (cannabis), I don’t think I would be alive,’” she said. “So, I created the brand Black Buddha.”
McCarthy said the perceived spiritual connection has helped.
“It’s a brand of wellness. It’s a brand of being able to unapologetically claim the power of this plant. It’s a brand that connects you and it makes you feel better,” McCarthy said.
McCarthy entered the partnership with Trulieve in October.
“We are excited to welcome Black Buddha Cannabis to our product lineup,” said Trulieve’s Chief Executive Officer Kim Rivers. “Roz’s inspiring story and her brand’s dedication to healing through medical marijuana align perfectly with Trulieve’s mission to provide high-quality, purpose-driven products to our customers.”
McCarthy said the brand features phrases that are designed to have a spiritual feel. They use terms like “Nirvana,” which means bliss and ultimate reality, along with “get enlightened” which is the defining element of the Buddha as in the enlightened one.
One comment
EARL PITTS AMERICAN
July 22, 2025 at 6:20 pm
I copied the artical below from another publication but it would explain alot of shenagians which were going on in Florida a few years back to get the business mentioned in this artical off the ground.
Why the so called total reveal of Epstein stuff will never be outed.
“Certian highly placed elected officals promoting the sale of stock in the up and coming medical and recreational marajuana industry were throwing off shore parties for both Democratic and Republican elected officials. The hook was to get them invested in the marajuana stock and then their votes on any pending legislation would go the way of the marajuana up and coming industry. The bait for the parties was the beautiful young ladies. Once these elected officials had their good time they were hit with the sales pitch to get them invested in marajuana stock.
Think about it. Thats why there is still a reluctance to release these so called lists.
Full disclosure – the above is just a theroy for your consideration”.
Thank you, Earl