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Action Alert: Demand Criminal Justice Reform!

SSDP Action Alert

Tell Congress to pass the National Criminal Justice Commission Act!
Act now!

Dear friends,

Our criminal justice system is a disgrace. While the United States makes up only 5% of the world's population, we hold more than 25% of the world's prisoners. Prisons are overcrowded, courts are clogged, police resources are squandered and at the root of it all, is the war on drugs.

Thankfully, we have a chance to make Congress take a serious look at reform.

On Wednesday, June 23rd, SSDP is taking part in the National Call In Day for Criminal Justice Reform and we need your help to urge the passage of the National Criminal Justice Commission Act, S. 714. This legislation would create a bipartisan commission to review criminal justice policies and make recommendations for reform. Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) and 15 bipartisan cosponsors introduced the bill last year.

Now, the Senate Judiciary Committee has reviewed and favorably passed the bill and it is awaiting passage out of the U.S. Senate. Please take a minute to call the following Senators and ask them to prioritize and support Senate passage of this important legislation:

  • Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), 202-224-5556
  • Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), 202-224-3135
  • Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin (D-IL), 202-224-9447

Phone Script:

"Hello, my name is _______________. I am a registered voter in ____________, and I am calling to express both my support and concern regarding the National Criminal Justice Commission Act, Senate Bill 714. I am supportive of the measure because transparency on the bipartisan commission will increase public safety and government accountability, and because the incredible rates of incarceration over the past 20 years are unsustainable socially and economically. I am concerned because if this act is not passed, we will once again be endorsing a criminal justice system that is fundamentally flawed."

More information can be found at http://www.ssdp.org/cjreform (please tweet, buzz and share this link!).

The drug war has devastated America's criminal justice system. If this commission is approved, it will surely include recommendations to reform our nation's drug policies. So please, call Congress today!

Sincerely, 

Jonathan Perri

Associate Director

Students for Sensible Drug Policy 

P.S. Do you want SSDP to continue pressuring Congress to ensure more sensible drug policies? If so, please become a monthly donor

of $20 or more:

http://www.ssdp.org/donate

Coalition for Medical Marijuana--New Jersey, Inc.: July 2010 Agenda & June Minutes



Monthly Public Meeting Agenda
Lawrence Twp. Library (Mercer County) Room #3
Tuesday, July 13, 2010; 7:00 PM -- 9:00 PM

7:00 PM:  Call meeting to order.   Approve May 2010 minutes.  Discuss:

NJ Senate and Assembly approved a 90-day delay in implementing the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act, which was scheduled to take effect July 1, 2010.  CMMNJ held a rally & press conference to oppose the delay on 6/17 in Jersey City.  More amendments to come? See NBC coverage of the issue.  Send a pre-written letter to your NJ legislator today opposing any more changes to the law.   CMMNJ received a reply from DHSS.

Report from Jahan Marcu, a cannabinoid researcher from Temple U. School of Medicine.

Cures Not Wars press conference at Manhattan City Hall steps, Thurs., 7/8, from 10-11 AM.

Upcoming CMMNJ events: MS Patients Support Group in Livingston, NJ, 7/12/10 @ 7 pm;  Dingbatz in Clifton, NJ, 7/31/10, 8pm--12 MN;  Rittenhouse Square Concert Series 8/6, 8/13 & 8/20; Stakeholders Meeting with ASA's Steph Sherer 8/21 10-4PM; NJ League of Municipalities, 11/15-18/10.  Volunteers needed for upcoming events.

Treasury report: Checking: $4,387.71; PayPal: $2,017.43.  Tax-deductible donations to CMMNJ, a 501(c)(3) public charity may be made through Paypal on our web site, or send a check made out to "CMMNJ" to the address below.  Get a free t-shirt for a donation above $15—specify size.  (100 new t-shirts received--$700; 500 magnets ordered--$170.)
  
CMMNJ's scheduled meetings are the second Tuesday of each month at the Lawrence Twp. Library from 7:00 PM until 9:00 PM.  All are welcome.  Snacks are served.  The library is at 2751 Brunswick Pike, Lawrence Twp., Tel. #609.882.9246.   (Meeting at the library does not imply their endorsement of our issue.)  For more info, contact:

Ken Wolski, RN, MPA
Executive Director, Coalition for Medical Marijuana—New Jersey, Inc. www.cmmnj.org
219 Woodside Ave.
Trenton, NJ 08618    
(609) 394-2137 [email protected]



 
 
Monthly Public Meeting Minutes
Tuesday, June 8 2010; 7:00 PM -- 9:00 PM
Lawrence Twp. Library, Mercer County, NJ

7:00 PM:  Call meeting to order.   May 2010 minutes approved.   Discussion:

The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act is scheduled to take effect in July 2010.  Gov. Christie asks for 6 -- 12 month delay.  CMMNJ held a press conference June 4, 2010 on the State House steps in Trenton to say "no" to the delay.  Chris Goldstein gave a review of the media coverage. 

CMMNJ's supporters are asked to tell NJ state officials to implement the law as written.  Contact Governor Christie: http://www.nj.gov/governor/contact/
Contact DHSS Commissioner Alaigh: http://www.state.nj.us/cgi-bin/dhss/contact/contact.pl?page=marijuana  CMMNJ is sending another letter to DHSS. 

NORML will be asked to provide a Capwiz letter to send to legislators.  (Request to have a Roll Call of legislative supporters on web site.)  Steve C.
detailed how he suffers from Crohn's Disease without access to marijuana while paying exorbitant prices for less effective pharmaceuticals.  Several LTE's already published.  Diane Forrnbacher is coordinating Patients Advisory Group.  Svet Milic, Peter Rosenfeld & Frank Fulbrook are coordinating the ATC Advisory Board.

Events:  New Jersey State Nurses Assn. "Medical Marijuana Breakfast" was postponed.  Excellent front page article in the May/June 2010 edition of The American Nurse, "Exploring the science of medical marijuana."  Report of successful Gay Pride Parade on 6/6/10 in Asbury Park.  

Upcoming CMMNJ events:; Jersey City Press Conference, 6/17/10 at City Hall, 1:00 PM; Southern Shore Music Festival, 6/19/10, Bridgeton, NJ, noon to 8 PM; Project Freedom Wellness Fair, Lawrence Twp., 6/22/10 3 pm to 7 pm; MS Patients Support Group in Livingston, NJ, 7/12/10 @ 7 pm;  Dingbatz in
Clifton, NJ, 7/31/10, 8pm--12 MN;  NJ League of Municipalities, Atlantic City, 11/15-18/10.  Board to discuss Rittenhouse Sq. Concert series.

Treasury report: Checking: $2,789.79; PayPal: $2640.34. More magnets & t-shirts ordered. 

CMMNJ's scheduled meetings are the second Tuesday of each month at the Lawrence Twp. Library from 7:00 PM until 9:00 PM.  All are welcome.  Snacks are served.  The library is at 2751 Brunswick Pike, Lawrence Twp., Tel. #609.882.9246.   (Meeting at the library does not imply their endorsement of our issue.)  For more info, contact: Ken Wolski, RN, MPA, 219 Woodside Ave., Trenton, NJ 08618     (609) 394-2137 [email protected] www.cmmnj.org

Press Release: ACLU Sues Wal-Mart on Behalf of Cancer Patient Fired for Legally Using Medical Marijuana

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 29, 2010 CONTACT: (212) 549-2666, [email protected] ACLU Sues Wal-Mart On Behalf Of Cancer Patient Fired For Legally Using Medical Marijuana Michigan State Law Passed In 2008 Protects Employees Who Use Marijuana To Treat Debilitating Diseases BATTLE CREEK, MI - The American Civil Liberties Union and ACLU of Michigan, in partnership with the law firm of Daniel W. Grow, PLLC, filed a lawsuit today against Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. and the manager of its Battle Creek store for wrongfully firing an employee for using medicinal marijuana in accordance with state law to treat the painful symptoms of an inoperable brain tumor and cancer. The lawsuit charges that Joseph Casias, 30, the Battle Creek Wal-Mart's 2008 Associate of the Year, was fired from his job at the store after testing positive for marijuana, despite being legally registered to use the drug under Michigan's medical marijuana law. In accordance with state law, Casias never ingested marijuana while at work and never worked while under the influence of marijuana. "Medical marijuana has had a life-changing positive effect for Joseph, but Wal-Mart made him pay a stiff and unfair price for his medicine," said Scott Michelman, staff attorney with the ACLU. "No patient should be forced to choose between adequate pain relief and gainful employment, and no employer should be allowed to intrude upon private medical choices made by employees in consultation with their doctors." Casias has suffered for more than a decade from sinus cancer and a brain tumor in the back of his head and neck that was the size of a softball when it was first diagnosed. His condition has forced him to endure extensive treatment and chemotherapy, interferes with his ability to speak and is a source of severe and constant pain. Nonetheless, he had been successfully employed for more than five years by Wal-Mart in Battle Creek, where he began as an entry-level grocery stocker in 2004 and worked his way up to inventory control manager. "For some people, working at Wal-Mart is just a job, but for me, it was a way of life," said Joseph. "I came to Wal-Mart for a better opportunity for my family and I worked hard and proved myself. I just want the opportunity to continue my work." In 2008, Michigan voters enacted the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act, which provides protection for the medical use of the drug under state law. The pain medication Casias' oncologist had previously prescribed for him provided only minimal relief and as a side effect caused Casias to suffer from severe nausea. After the law was enacted, Joseph's oncologist recommended that he try marijuana as permitted by state law, and so Casias obtained the appropriate registry card from the Michigan Department of Community Health. The results were immediate and profound: his pain decreased dramatically, the new medicine did not induce nausea and Casias was able to gain back some of the weight he had lost during treatment. "Joseph is exactly the kind of person whom Michigan voters had in mind when they passed the state's medical marijuana law," said Daniel W. Grow, a St. Joseph, Michigan-based attorney. "Medical marijuana is legal in this state because voters recognized its ability to alleviate the pain, nausea and other symptoms associated with debilitating medical conditions, and no corporation doing business in Michigan should be permitted to flout state law." Michigan's medical marijuana law protects patients registered with the state of Michigan from "arrest, prosecution, or penalty in any manner" for the use of medicinal marijuana as prescribed by a doctor and also protects employees from being disciplined for their use of medical marijuana in accordance with the law. The law does not require employers to accommodate the ingestion of marijuana in the workplace and does not protect employees who work under the influence of the drug. The outcome of today's lawsuit, filed in Calhoun County Circuit Court, could have ramifications beyond Michigan. "Today, 14 states and the District of Columbia provide protections for patients who use marijuana as recommended by a doctor," said Kary L. Moss, Executive Director of the ACLU of Michigan. "This case will be closely watched by patients across the country who rely on this medicine for pain relief and on their state laws for protection against unscrupulous employers." Lawyers on the case include Grow, Michelman, Moss and Dan Korobkin and Michael J. Steinberg of the ACLU of Michigan. A copy of the today's complaint is available online at: www.aclu.org/drug-law-reform/casias-v-wal-mart-complaint Additional information about the ACLU's work to reform drug laws is available online at: www.aclu.org/drug-law-reform Additional information about the ACLU of Michigan is available online at: www.aclumich.org.

Federal Drug Agency Bans Pro-Legalization Police Group From Conference (Press Release)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 22, 2010 CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or [email protected] Federal Drug Agency Bans Pro-Legalization Police Group From Conference SAMHSA Doesn't Want Views Expressed at Treatment Event in Chicago CHICAGO, IL -- A group of police officers, judges and prosecutors who support legalizing and regulating drugs is crying foul after a federal agency reneged on a contract that gave the law enforcers a booth to share their anti-prohibition views at a government-sponsored treatment conference in Chicago next week. After accepting registration payment from Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration initially told the police group that it was canceling its booth at the National Conference on Women, Addiction and Recovery because of overbooking and space concerns. However, Sharon Amatetti of SAMHSA's Center for Substance Abuse Treatment later informed LEAP that, in a decision rising all the way to SAMHSA Administrator Pamela Hyde's office, the group was actually being disinvited for its viewpoint. "It's alarming that the federal government is trying to silence the voices of front-line police officers who just want to network and collaborate with treatment professionals to achieve our shared goal of preventing substance abuse through effective public policy," said Neill Franklin, a former narcotics cop with the Maryland State Police and Baltimore Police Department who is now executive director of LEAP. "Perhaps the administration was most concerned that LEAP's law enforcers planned to shine a spotlight on the fact that under President Obama, the White House's drug control budget maintains the same two-to-one funding ratio in favor of harsh enforcement tactics over effective public health approaches." On a phone call with LEAP, Pamela Rodriguez of conference co-host TASC, Inc. of Illinois said that the police group wasn't welcome at the event because "our policy perspective and our policy objectives are different from you guys." She added, "It is the emphasis on prohibition vs. legalization that, for me at least, is the glaring dissonance with regard to our agenda." SAMHSA has since refunded LEAP's money. The conference takes place July 26-28 at Chicago's Downtown Magnificent Mile Marriott Hotel. Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) and its 30,000 supporters represent police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. Info at www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com. # # #

Flex Gets Great Response at NAACP Nat’l Conf.

Dear friends,

Last week I presented 10 Rules for Dealing with Police at the NAACP National Conference. The panel hosted by NAACP's Criminal Justice Program was focused on youth and the criminal justice system.

The 200-member audience was mostly high school and college-aged, and I couldn’t have hoped for a better reception. The video got an enthusiastic round of applause. More importantly, everyone stayed for the Q&A, which went beyond the allotted hour.

Before the screening, I asked if anyone had received any kind of know-your-rights training. Only a handful raised their hands. But afterward, their new knowledge inspired sophisticated questions covering Miranda rights, PATRIOT Act, videotaping police and more.

Needless to say, I’m proud to see 10 Rules resonating with NAACP and communities of color in the way we hoped it would. We’ve long anticipated that our success would depend on the ability to meet the needs of diverse audiences. We’re excited to see the film earning praise from the NAACP, libertarians and police departments alike.

Sincerely,

Steve

 

 

P.S. If you support this public education work, please consider making a small or large tax-deductible donation online. You may also send a check donation (made out to Flex Your Rights) to P.O. Box 21497, Washington, DC 20009.

Vienna Declaration Update: Number of endorsements

Dear friends,

Thank you for endorsing the Vienna Declaration.
Joining your ranks are over 5000 individuals, among them ex-presidents, Nobel Laureates, literary icons, police officers, current and former drug users and many, many others who believe drug policy should be based on evidence, not ideology.

This Saturday, to celebrate our success so far, the President of the International AIDS society (IAS) will be releasing the exact number of declaration endorsements at the opening of the International AIDS Conference, the largest public health conference on the planet. To help the IAS President make it clear that illicit drug policies causing disease, violence, and crime will not be tolerated by the international community we're asking each signatory to bring on four more endorsements.

Will you help us?

There are three easy ways you can encourage your friends to sign the Vienna Declaration online, right now:

1. Email them. Send them a pre-written email with our easy-to-use
Tell-A-Friend tool or share this shortened link to our site: http://bit.ly/signtheviennadeclaration.

2. Facebook and Twitter. Invite your friends to fan us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get daily updates and learn more about why they should sign the Declaration.

3. Blog or post a link. Visit the
media section of our site for all the information you need to blog about the Vienna declaration. You can also email us at [email protected] if you would like a badge to post to your site.

Every endorsement counts so please, continue spreading the word and help us make this Saturday's announcement a powerful one.

Thank you for your continued support,

The Vienna Declaration Team


Press Release: CMMNJ meeting will feature cannabis scientist and discussion of law

MEDIA ADVISORY - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 7/13/2010 The Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey - CMMNJ www.cmmnj.org Contact: Ken Wolski [email protected] 609 394 2137 or Chris Goldstein [email protected] CMMNJ meeting will feature cannabis scientist and discussion of law On Tuesday July 13th The Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey (CMMNJ) holds our monthly public meeting. The group will discuss the recent amendment to the medical marijuana law and the future of the state's program. Jahan Marcu is performing cutting edge research at Temple University into the unique chemical components of the marijuana plant called cannabinoids. Marcu will be a featured speaker. Researchers know that many of the cannabinoids in marijuana have powerful medical properties. Because of federal prohibition, intensive research into the clinical uses of these substances is difficult. Marcu is one of the few cannabinoid scientists in the country. This year he published a landmark paper on how cannabis can inhibit brain cancers. LINK http://cannabination.com/2010/01/12/published-study-shows-how-cannabis-inhibits-brain-cancer-asa-blog/ Previously, Jahan investigated cannabinoid synergy at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute. He also lectured on the subject of cannabinoids at Cannabis Cooperatives and at New College of California. At San Francisco State University, he investigated the therapeutic applicability of whole plant cannabinoid ratios, correlating these ratios to effects reported by medical cannabis patients and in clinical trials. Marcu’s information and experience are a wealth of knowledge for New Jersey residents who are potential patients or medical professionals. His blog can be found at www.cannabination.com CMMNJ hosts information seminars, monthly meetings and other events to educate the public about medical marijuana. The 7/13 meeting takes place at the Lawrence Township Public Library starting at 7:00PM. More about medical marijuana in New Jersey at www.cmmnj.org NJ residents are contacting their legislators about medical cannabis - http://cmmnj.blogspot.com/2010/06/supporters-contact-your-legislators.html Read the full text of NJ's medical marijuana law http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2008/Bills/PL09/307_.HTM For comment or more information contact: Ken Wolski [email protected] 609 394 2137 or Chris Goldstein [email protected]

Press Release: Plan for medical marijuana at hospitals called "pie in the sky"

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey (CMMNJ)
www.cmmnj.org


CONTACT: Ken Wolski RN 609 391 2137 [email protected] or Chris Goldstein [email protected]

Plan for medical marijuana at hospitals called "pie in the sky"


Last month the New Jersey Legislature delayed medical marijuana access and floated a new concept for the program: Rutgers University could be named as the sole source for all medical cannabis cultivation and the marijuana would be distributed only by hospitals.

The full presentation from the New Jersey Council of Teaching Hospitals (NJCTH) was reported in the Newark Star-Ledger today.  CMMNJ’s Chris Goldstein spoke via phone Friday with NJCTH President J. Richard Goldstein (no relation). He said that NJCTH was invited for what were described as informational discussions in Trenton and not to draft language for the law, calling the medical marijuana proposal “pie in the sky.” 
NJCTH’s Goldstein explained, “This is not a full plan. This was just an initial conversation with some key players. The Christie Administration just ran with it.”

Governor Chris Christie’s staff and some legislators have been speaking frequently with the media about the proposals. Patients could access marijuana at hospitals, to be sure, and Rutgers University certainly has the capability of farming medical cannabis. But their Boards of Directors and retained attorneys would be hard pressed to take on the one thing that private businesses already do: Risk.

New Jersey hospitals and Rutgers University have not fully examined their federal liabilities.  None of those entities have committed themselves to putting their assets on the line for sick and dying patients. They are not alone; not a single hospital or university in the US currently engages in the production or distribution of state regulated medical marijuana.*  Thirteen states have medical marijuana programs running where private non-profit or for-profit business owners take on the tremendous risk presented by ongoing federal prohibition. Any one of several authorities could seize their properties and assets at any given moment. The owners and employees of medical cannabis businesses also take on the risk of personally losing their freedom through federal arrest.

There do exist groups of private citizens ready to get New Jersey ’s program running.  New Jersey’s medical cannabis patient advocacy groups and others groups interested in offering information about the medical marijuana program have not been afforded the same opportunities to meet with “key players” that Rutgers the NJCTH have enjoyed.  Form letters sent from the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services claimed that state officials were considering no proposals from any group.

The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act currently calls for the initial licensing of six, private Alternative Treatment Centers (ATCs) around the state.  Patients can only gain legal protections by purchasing marijuana from an authorized ATC.  The NJ Department of Health and Senior Services is currently scheduled to begin the regulatory process in October and bring the medical cannabis program online starting in January 2011.
 
The Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey is intensifying efforts to educate the public and legislators about the ways to best serve the patients who qualify under the law.  Ken Wolski RN, executive director of CMMNJ, said, "The proposal to monopolize New Jersey's medical marijuana program to provide a funding source for training new doctors in the state represents a betrayal of the very patients that the law was designed to protect and serve."

A cannabinoid researcher from Temple University will address the CMMNJ monthly public meeting which will be held on July 13, 2010 at the Lawrence Township (Mercer Co.) Public Library from 7 - 9 pm.

* The University of Mississippi hosts the only DEA licensed marijuana cultivation facility. The single strain of cannabis is distributed to four federal medical marijuana patients. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) also oversees the federal marijuana. It is used for research on a very limited basis.

 

Ken Wolski, RN, MPA
Executive Director
Coalition for Medical Marijuana--New Jersey, Inc. 
www.cmmnj.org
219 Woodside Ave.
Trenton, NJ 08618
609.394.2137
[email protected]

CONTACT: Ken Wolski RN 609 391 2137 [email protected] or Chris Goldstein [email protected]

The Sentencing Project: Disenfranchisement News -- July 8, 2010

 

Disenfranchisement News

Sentencing Project

In this issue

·         International: Kenyan Prisoners to Vote in August; Disenfranchisement Addressed Across Borders » GO

·         Oklahoma: State Officials Still Confused » GO

 

Contact Us

Send an email to
The Sentencing Project.

The Sentencing Project
1705 DeSales Street, NW
8th Floor
Washington, DC 20036

July 8, 2010

Disenfranchisement News

International

Kenyan prisoners to vote in August

After a petition was filed by prison inmates in Mombasa, a Kenyan court has decided to allow prisoners to vote in the upcoming August election.  It is the first time that Kenyan prisoners have been given the right to vote, BBC reported.

"It is a credible decision," said Hassan Omar Hassan of the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights. "The punishment is supposed to be reformative and when people are incarcerated they lose their freedom but other rights should stay."

A Business Daily editorial, which makes mention of the U.S. standard of denying voting rights, applauded Kenya's reform stating: "It represents a change in the way our justice system and the public at large is now looking at jails - not as institutions for punishment but as instruments of correction where inmates are treated with respect and dignity even as they are helped to walk away from their criminal past."

Disenfranchisement Addressed Across Borders

Radio Bilingüe's program, "Linea Abierto," examined disenfranchisement in a broadcast featuring Myrna Pérez of the Brennan Center, rights restoration advocate Andrés Idarraga, and Pastor Gilberto Velez. The program, based in Mexico, highlighted the various impacts of voter disenfranchisement to the Latino community. To listen to the Spanish broadcast, click here.

Oklahoma

Good Behavior + Credits + Release = Continued Disenfranchisement

Tulsa World columnist Julie DelCour explains the rule of law in Oklahoma: "If an inmate receives a 10-year sentence, accrues credits for good behavior and is released early without supervision, he or she still cannot vote until the 10-year sentence expires." DelCour quotes several editorials, including Time magazine and the Chicago Tribune, that oppose disenfranchisement after prisoners have completed their sentence.

Based on a League of Women Voters study, DelCour states that "by some calculations" about 10 percent of Oklahoma's voting-age population has a felony record. Further, the state has the fourth highest per-capita incarceration rate.

"The number of felons serving probation or parole is growing, not shrinking," she writes. "Also increasing is the number of former inmates who followed the rules, participated in programs and received an early release because of their positive actions while incarcerated. They aren't allowed to register to vote, however, because their sentence has not expired." Read article here.

Back to top ^

The Sentencing Project is a national organization working for a fair and effective criminal justice system by promoting reforms in sentencing law and practice, and alternatives to incarceration.

 

D.A.R.E. to DONATE: Help SSDP fight anti-drug propaganda!

 


Act now!
Make a donation today to help SSDP continue our
important work.

Dear friends,

Today is the final day of D.A.R.E.'s annual conference in Cincinnati, Ohio.  And they are mad.  They're losing the drug war, and they are grasping at anything to stop our progress. 

As the only drug policy reform organization representing students and youth, SSDP is directly countering the propaganda machine at D.A.R.E.  We're advocating for alternative drug education and prevention programs based on science and compassion, not a rabid ideology.  

In order to keep fighting their propaganda, we need your support.  Can you help us bring more students to our 2011 SSDP International Conference by making a contribution now?  

Unlike the D.A.R.E. conference, where attendees spend upwards of $800 on a single registration fee, we raise funds year-round for our conference scholarship fund, to help cover the travel and lodging costs of students from around the world.  Will you D.A.R.E. to make a donation to SSDP's scholarship fund that will go directly to students?  (Don't worry, we won't spend it on a custom painted Mustang sports cars or lion costumes, like D.A.R.E. does with your tax dollars.)  

Help us make SSDP's 2011 International Conference bigger and better than D.A.R.E.'s by making a donation online RIGHT NOW!

Sincerely,

Jonathan Perri

Associate Director

Students for Sensible Drug Policy

http://www.ssdp.org/donate