Dear friends,
Using the Just Say Now call tool is easy and can be done from anywhere.
Call California Voters– about Proposition 19 which would regulate marijuana similar to alcohol.
Call Arizona Voters– about Prop 203 which would protect medical marijuana patients from arrest and prosecution.
Call Oregon Voters– about Measure 74 which allow the state to provide patients with safe access to medical marijuana through dispensaries.
Call South Dakota Voters– about Measure 13 which would protect medical marijuana patients from arrest and prosecution.
Help us end the war on marijuana - start calling voters and remind them to get to the polls vote for sensible marijuana reform!
Click here to start calling: http://go.firedoglake.com/
Each call just takes a few minutes, and you can start calling voters with just your email address or Facebook account. Check out our video that explains how to call, step by step.
With only a 48 hours left until the election, voicing your support for marijuana law reform has never been easier or more urgently important, so start calling voters today.
Thank you from SSDP!
Connect with SSDP
Come hear Jim Gray, former Superior Court Judge of Orange County, CA, talk about why the "war on drugs" has failed, and what you can do about it.
James P. Gray was a trial judge in Orange County, California beginning in 1983. Before becoming a judge, he served as a Volunteer in the Peace Corps in Costa Rica, a staff judge advocate and criminal defense attorney in the Navy JAG Corps, a federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, and a civil litigation attorney in a private law firm, in addition to being a Republican candidate for US Congress in 1998, and a Libertarian candidate for US Senate in 2004. Judge Gray has discussed issues of drug policy on more than two hundred television and radio shows and public forums all across the country. Using his experience on the bench and elsewhere, he has also authored a book on the failed War on Drugs, another Wearing The Robe, about practical and ethical issues in being a judge.
For more information, see http://www.judgejimgray.com/
March 2009
This issueâ¦
LEAP in the News
LEAP was busy in the media this month: our speakers did no less than 45 radio, TV and print interviews during March, with very smart, savvy and in-depth discussions allowing LEAP's end-of-prohibition pitch to be heard and read by millions. Nationally syndicated columnists and reporters engaged in the debate at length, possibly spurred by the daily dramatic reports coming out of Mexico about warring drug cartels. Terry Nelson, armed with 30+ years of drug interdiction and border patrol efforts across all of Latin America, was in huge demand, even making two trips to Europe to address leaders and anti-prohibition activists. Terry also appeared on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 to discuss why the United States should legalize all drugs. For Terry's CNN appearance and other compelling videos featuring our speakers, please visit LEAP's YouTube channel.Â
LEAP Speakers in Action
Contributed by Mike Smithson, Speakers Bureau Director
Like Admiral Nimitz sending the US submarine fleet out to perform havoc against the enemy in WWII, so too did LEAP dispatch a bevy of speakers to the far reaches of North America and Europe to counter prohibition rhetoric this month. A broad spectrum of interested parties heard from LEAP in March, including Quakers and Unitarian Universalists, the German American Society in New Braunfels, Texas and a panel at the Salt Lake City Library Movie Series in Utah. Universities once again provided numerous opportunities for our speakers, including Richard Amos & John Baeza at the University of Central Florida, Rick Van Wickler at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, Jim Gray at Pitzer College in Claremont, California, and Peter Christ at Erie Community College in Buffalo, New York - where one student commented, "We've had speakers that were informative and speakers that were interesting, but this is the first time we've ever had both!"Â
And we were testifying to help make real changes to harmful laws here and now. Norm Stamper worked in Minnesota, and Jack Cole in Rhode Island, continuing an increasing trend to make use of our speakers to support drug policy reform legislation, even on the incremental level. For the first quarter of 2009, LEAP has provided testimony in Texas, Massachusetts, South Dakota, Minnesota, Montana, British Columbia, and to the European Union in Brussels and the United Nations in Vienna.  LEAP may soon be coming to your town, as you'll read below. If not, invite us! On the horizon in April, Executive Director Jack Cole and retired Police Chief Tim Datig will tour for three days in the Green Mountain State, (that's Vermont to the non-New Englander readers). Jim Watkin rides his iron horse into Ann Arbor, Michigan for the Mid West Students for Sensible Drug Policy Conference while Jack Cole speaks at the New England SSDP Conference. Francis Wilkinson will participate in a debate at the illustrious Cambridge Union Society and Peter Christ spends a few days in Ohio, starting with Kent University on April 22. Folks in Australia are begging for a LEAP tour-it's in the works-and a drug policy conference is in the planning stages at a Maryland college. Numerous Connecticut events are hitting the calendarâ¦it's hard to keep up.  For more information on upcoming LEAP appearances, please check our events calendar.
Make The LEAP
LEAP is recognized as a unique and authoritative voice on the need to end drug prohibition, and the demand for our speakers continues to increase. Our ability to accommodate those requests is largely dependent on the generosity of our members, who help us build our movement every day. Please show your support for LEAP by making a one-time or monthly donation today, and we will send you a LEAP badge pin. By making a small donation and proudly wearing the LEAP logo, you can show your support for our speakers, who are fighting on the front lines of the war against the "war on drugs".Â
Did You Know�
The "war on drugs" has been making headlines, and it's more important than ever to tell YOUR lawmakers how you feel about drug prohibition. By visiting www.askyourlawmaker.org, you can sign up for a free account in about 30 seconds, type "war on drugs" into the search engine, and vote for questions by LEAP Administrative Director Bill Fried and Speakers Bureau Director Mike Smithson. The site is still growing, but some highly-ranked questions have received responses from politicians, so it's another great way for LEAP to be heard.
We need YOUR help to continue doing all that we do.
If you aren't already, please consider volunteering your time or donating to LEAP. Together we can End Prohibition Now!
LEAP Links
LEAP Speakers Blog, click here.
[Courtesy of MPP]
Please join the Marijuana Policy Project on Thursday, March 20, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., at Madam's Organ in Adams Morgan.
As per the bar's Thursday night custom of supporting area nonprofits, $1 from each drink sold and 20% of food sales during the event will go to MPP, so please invite your friends to eat and drink in support of ending marijuana prohibition!
We'll also be giving away MPP literature, selling MPP merchandise, and raffling off a few decks of MPP's exclusive âThe Deal on Marijuana Policy Reformâ playing cards.
What: MPP Happy Hour
When: Thursday, March 20, 5:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Where: Madam's Organ, 2461 18th Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20009
And MPP's Rob Kampia is looking to put together an MPP soccer team for the Washington D.C. Jewish Community Center's league. Games are played on Sunday mornings and afternoons from April through July. Come to the happy hour, or e-mail him at [email protected] if you're interested. You can find more information about the league here.
We look forward to seeing you â and all of your friends â on the 20th for happy hour and this spring for soccer!
