Mildred Barnes Griggs wanted to get into the cannabis business to revitalize the economy of her small hometown of Marianna, Arkansas. But when she and her expert team applied for a license to grow, all they got was disappointment. Their application was supposed to be judged on merit, but, in this case, the meaning of merit isn’t all that clear.

Thanks also to Kim Nguyen, Jodi Gersh, Clara Shelton, Matt Herz, Martin Skavish, Rachel Estabrook, Francie Swidler.