Organizations

Thank you to everyone that posted comments on news articles and included a link to our website. The response has been great. Please keep up the good work.

We’ve seen a huge increase in both hits on the website and people who have signed up for our weekly newsletter. Everyone interested in improving drug policy can put “Google Alerts” to good use. Just visit: http://www.google.com/alerts and type in the information requested. We suggest the search terms (drug) and (marijuana). When you get an alert check out the story, a lot of them allow comments. Voice your opinion by posting comments every chance you get. This is an effective and free way to get the word out about the need for drug policy reform. Nate Miller, a Legislative Analyst for Marijuana Policy Project suggested using Google Alerts for this purpose. Nate’s been helping us be more effective at implementing drug policy reform. He stressed that public opinion is powerful when it comes to getting politicians to take action and politicians pay great attention to both articles and comments. We chose to include a few facts that a lot of people don’t know and invite readers to visit our website. Here’s a copy of one of our posts, please include a link to our website when you post comments:

PROHIBITION never works it just CAUSES CRIME & VIOLENCE. Illegal drugs are way easier for kids to get than legal ones. The USA spends $69 billion a year on the drug war, builds 900 new prison beds and hires 150 more correction officers every two weeks, arrests someone on a drug charge every 17 seconds, jails more people than any nation and has killed over 100,000 citizens because of the drug war. In 1914 when ALL DRUGS WERE LEGAL 1.3% of our population was addicted to drugs, today 1.3% of our population is STILL ADDICTED TO DRUGS. The only way to control drugs is to REGULATE THEM AND END THE PROFITS AVAILABLE TO CRIMINALS just like ending alcohol prohibition did. There’s only been one drug success story in history, tobacco, THE MOST DEADLY and one of the MOST ADDICTIVE drugs. Almost half the users quit because of REGULATION, ACCURATE INFORMATION AND MEDICAL TREATMENT. No one went to jail and no one got killed. JOIN EMAIL LIST, WATCH VIDEOS:

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Tell your friends about the "Enough is Enough" petition to stop the reckless overuse of SWAT tactics and save the lives of civilians and police alike. This petition is sponsored by: StoptheDrugWar.org Click here for details.

[Courtesy of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition] This issue… Make the LEAP LEAP on Capital Hill State by State International Overtures What People are saying about LEAP Make the LEAP Our staff knows that the reason volunteers aren’t paid is because their service is priceless. Volunteers want to know the value of their efforts, and it is easy to see the fruits of your labor when you give LEAP your time and talents. Already this year, 39 volunteers have worked with our modest staff to put speakers in front of over 400 audiences. In San Francisco, a LEAP member called the College of Marin, spoke to a pair of professors and convinced them that a LEAP speaker would be great for their classes. A presentation by James Anthony was so well received that the same professors called us back to set up a college-wide event for the fall. Now that’s activism! San Francisco is also the site of the July 4 Freedom Road 5K Race, a benefit for LEAP conceived and organized entirely by one of our volunteers, Bill Dake. In a perfect example of how valuable active volunteers can be, Bill’s race in Golden Gate Park last July 4 was so well-organized and well-attended that it brought in $940 for LEAP. In its second year, the race is sure to be even bigger and better! If you would like more information on participating in the race or pledging a donation, please email [email protected] Our speakers make up the bulk of our volunteer base, some giving hundreds of hours each year. These highly motivated volunteers give testimony before legislative bodies, meet with VIPs and express themselves in ink through our OpEd program and LEAP blog. Cost of a standard presentation: $100.00. Value of a quality speaker on a nationally syndicated radio show? Priceless. If you haven’t signed up for the LEAP volunteer list yet, we have lots of ways you can help. Send an e-mail to [email protected] and ask to be added to the list. Featured volunteer action: Contact your local, state and federal politicians via mail or email (letter via USPS is the gold standard). Better yet, call their offices and arrange a 15 minute meeting. At the federal level one can easily talk to an aide at the district office. Not sure what to say? Contact Howard J. Wooldridge at: [email protected] He is an experienced spokesman for reform and our Education Specialist in Washington, DC. LEAP on Capital Hill Co-founder Howard Wooldridge began our DC Education Campaign in 2006. Since then he’s visited every Congressional office, and attended numerous committee hearings and events in the area. Howard recently attended a fundraiser for a friendly organization. At the event, he spoke to a Senator and several members of Congress, giving them each the LEAP message. Cost of attending the event: $35.00 dollars. Value of face time with Congressmen and Senators? Priceless. LEAP State by State Texas volunteers have made the LEAP and are keeping our speakers busy. Russ Jones has been active across the center of the state. He’s reached out to a diverse cross-section of groups from the Travis Lions Club in Austin to the Brazos Family Medicine Residency Program. New York is on fire, as our speakers, citizen volunteers and staff joined reformers to take on the Rockefeller Drugs Laws. The Rockefeller Drug Laws passed in 1973, mandate harsh sentences for sales of relatively minor amounts of drugs. New York is also seeing co-founder Peter Christ back in action in his home state after completing a recent tour of Ohio. Jim Gierach made time to speak to another attentive audience in Ohio. Over 150 people were present at the Cincinnati Rotary Club meeting. Following his presentation in Cincinnati, Jim Gierach traveled to Waterloo, Iowa for several events and a number of VIP meetings. These one-on-one VIP meetings are playing an increasingly important role in our strategy for leaving behind the seeds of reform. The Baltimore Maryland Leadership Council hosted Executive Director Jack Cole for his third debate before their members. This influential group has previously pitted Jack against heavy weights like Thomas Carr, Director of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) in the Washington - Maryland area, and US Assistant Attorney Andrea Smith, Coordinator for the Narcotics Task Force in Maryland. This year, Jack again debated HIDTA Director Thomas Carr. Not surprisingly 15% of the audience when asked thought we should continue the War on Drugs-the moderator estimated that 70% of the attendees agreed we should end prohibition. Tony Ryan made the news as a speaker to the National Libertarian Party Presidential Convention in Denver, Colorado. He and fellow speaker Richard Mack gave several outstanding interviews. So far this year LEAP has worked in MA, MI, MD, CA, AZ, NM, UT, FL, NC, SC, VA, CT, NH, ME, SD and WA, just to name a few. Cost of a week long tour for a LEAP speaker: $1500- $3,000. Value of LEAP coming to a town near you? Priceless.

Power of One: Monthly I attend the breakfast at a conservative facility which trains future leaders of the conservative movement. This morning the speaker was Scott Swett, the man who created the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Asked how he got involved, he said it was unexpected. Early in 2004 he was upset with John Kerry being regarded as a ‘war hero.’ ‘Someone should really expose this guy for the fraud he is.’ He thought. And then like a wave washing over him, he realized he was the ‘someone.’ Love or hate this man, he probably was the single, most powerful reason Kerry lost to Bush in 2004. Never, ever, ever doubt the power of one. Minding my own business when: After a few hours with Misty one morning this week (I have to work the weekend, so I snuck out to ride), I went to my favorite Mexican café (Chipotles) to enjoy a meal. Naturally I sat at the stool next to the cash register so everyone would read the t-shirt as they paid. A young woman tapped me on the shoulder. “Is your t-shirt serious? Cops want to legalize drugs? WHY?”….and from her tone I believed she was about ready to hit me. “Cut crime, no drug dealers & we can arrest more DUIs and child molesters.” I replied. Her face broke into a big smile, she shook my hand and thanked me for my position. Whew! No black eye to explain to my better half! BONUS: She said she works for SAMHSA (federal agency dealing with substance abuse and mental health) in their treatment division. She invited me to address her colleagues during a ‘brown bag lunch’ seminar. It is being set up. She finished our conversation saying that a few years ago, when the Drug Czar was speaking to her group, she told him the war on drugs was a horrible policy and should be ended immediately. What are we fighting for? Last month Bob in Colorado invited me into an on-going, on line discussion about war on drugs on a Coast Guard veteran’s site. After much was written, one man said, ‘why do you put so much energy into getting someone the right to snort cocaine up their nose?’ His question made me think. My answer: ‘The larger issue I am working on is to stop allowing government agents to come into your home, take you and put you in a prison because of something you are doing to yourself. The next logical step is for the government, in the name of protecting citizens, to take fat people out of the home and put them on a fat farm until they become healthy (healthy as defined by the government). This answer shut the guy up.

[Courtesy of International Drug Policy Consortium] The International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC) is a global network of NGOs and professional networks that specialise in issues related to illegal drug production and use. The Consortium aims to promote objective and open debate on the effectiveness, direction and content of drug policies at national and international level, and supports evidence-based policies that are effective in reducing drug-related harm. It disseminates the reports of its member organisations about particular drug-related matters, and offers expert consultancy services to policymakers and officials around the world. COMMUNICATIONS The IDPC website has been updated, and a specific section created for materials related to the United Nations 10-year review of the global drug control system. This section, accessed through a link on the homepage at www.idpc.info, contains a selection of official documents, IDPC reports and updates, and related publications relevant to the review that will culminate in a high-level political meeting in Vienna in March 2009. With effect from April 2008, IDPC is now administered and co-ordinated from the offices of Release, the London-based drugs and legal rights NGO. The Beckley Foundation remains a full member of the IDPC, and will continue to contribute reports and analysis, but the co-ordination of financial matters, administration and communications will from now on fall to Release. In this regard, you may receive future communications from either Geni Horwood ([email protected]), the IDPC Co-ordinator, or Christopher Hallam ([email protected]), the IDPC Research Assistant, who are both based at Release. At the same time, we are in the process of expanding our network of consultants who work with governments around the world to promote the development of humane and effective drug policies, and specifically the agreed IDPC views and positions. As at June 1st, we have the following consultants working with us: EUROPE – Mike Trace, Grazia Zuffa. ASIA – Gabor Somogyi. LATIN AMERICA – Coletta Youngers. CARIBBEAN – Marcus Day. We are hoping to add further consultants to this list in the coming months, and will keep you informed. If you wish to make contact with any of these individuals, you can get their contact details from Geni on the above email address. PUBLICATIONS IDPC ADVOCACY GUIDE, VERSION 4 This version has only minor changes from the previous version, distributed in April, and will be the final version of the advocacy guide. From now on, a series of IDPC updates on the UN Drug Policy Review will be produced, the first being scheduled for the end of July. ENGLISH http://www.idpc.info/php-bin/documents/IDPC_AdvocacyGuide_June08_EN.pdf SPANISH http://www.idpc.info/php-bin/documents/IDPC_AdvocacyGuide_June08_ES.pdf IDPC ADVOCACY NOTES To help our consultants, members and partners to focus their advocacy engagement with national governments and international agencies, we will be producing short summaries of IDPC positions in the form of advocacy notes. The first three of these are now available on the IDPC website: The UN High-Level Meeting on AIDS - New York, June 2008. ENGLISH http://www.idpc.info/php-bin/documents/IDPC_AdvocacyNote_UNMeetingAIDS_EN.pdf SPANISH http://www.idpc.info/php-bin/documents/IDPC_AdvocacyNote_UNMeetingAIDS_ES.pdf The Supply Reduction Working Group of the United Nations Drug Policy Review. http://www.idpc.info/php-bin/documents/IDPC_AdvocacyNote_SupplyReduc_EN.pdf The Demand Reduction Working Group of the United Nations Drug Policy Review. ENGLISH http://www.idpc.info/php-bin/documents/IDPC_AdvocacyNote_DRWG_EN.pdf SPANISH http://www.idpc.info/php-bin/documents/IDPC_AdvocacyNote_DRWG_ES.pdf THE LATIN AMERICAN "BLUE RIBBON" COMMISSION The Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy was launched by ex-presidents Cesar Gaviria (Colombia), Ernesto Zedillo (Mexico) and Fernando Henrique Cardoso (Brazil). Composed of eighteen eminent members from different countries in the region, its objective is to evaluate the effectiveness and impact of current drug policy and to contribute towards more efficient, safe and humane policies. It also aims to make Latin America's voice heard in the global debate concerning this transnational issue. The Commission intends to start wide-ranging debates about the issue, and in the course of its work will hear from experts, analyze alternatives and formulate suggestions. A final proposal will be presented in early 2009. For additional information, see: www.drogasydemocracia.org. ENGLISH http://www.idpc.info/php-bin/documents/LABlueRibbonCommission_EN.pdf SPANISH http://www.idpc.info/php-bin/documents/LABlueRibbonCommission_ES.pdf

Puerto Rico: Incarcerated and Politically Active Prior to casting their votes in the Democratic primary politically involved inmates in Puerto Rico were interviewed by the Associated Press at the Correctional Institute 501 in San Juan. "Health plans, education, jobs - these are things I'm counting on when I get out," said 29-year-old Omar Gonzalez. In Puerto Rico the law affords people in prison the right to vote. Yesenia Lociel, a corrections department spokeswoman, said 130 of the 448 medium and maximum-security inmates at the prison asked to vote - a turnout comparable to local primary elections. Though U.S. citizens, Puerto Ricans have no voting representation in Congress and cannot vote for president in the general election. Some of the prisoners, however, said they hope the population at large can have a larger say over national affairs in the future as the U.S. economy affects their progress upon release. Ghana: Ensuring Inmates are Able to Exercise Existing Voting Rights The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) has asked the Electoral Commission (EC) to facilitate general election voting by inmates within the Ghana Prisons Service. Article 42 of the Constitution states that "every citizen of Ghana of 18 years of age or above and of sound mind has the right to vote and is entitled to be registered as a voter for the purposes of public elections and referenda," and does not disenfranchise incarcerated citizens. Inmates, however, have reportedly not exercised their right to vote. The Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Dr Afari-Gyan, said although it was not the commission's intention to disenfranchise anyone, it did not, by convention, set up polling stations in certain places like prisons. "If the EC takes these steps, then it will demonstrate its commitment to ensuring that Ghanaians who are entitled and eligible to vote exercise their franchise," said CHRI Africa Co-coordinator, Nana Oye Lithur. Mississippi: Individual Re-enfranchisement Bills Must be Sought for Each Citizen "I committed a crime, and I paid my debt to society for that crime by serving time in prison," said Mississippi resident Steven Hubbard. "But when I was released, my punishment didn't end. Being stripped of the right to vote is not fair to convicted felons who pay their debt to society and serve the time given to them by the courts. It's almost like I was exiled from the country. If I can't vote, then I can't be an American, right?" Hubbard is one of Mississippi's 150,000 people who are disenfranchised due to a felony conviction. In Mississippi, after a sentence has been completed, anyone seeking restoration of voting rights must go to their legislator to persuade them to author an individual re-enfranchising bill. Both houses of the Legislature must then pass the bill, and the governor must sign it, according to the Mississippi Daily Journal. Ten to 12 citizens are re-enfranchised in Mississippi each year. Click here to read the article. An opinion editorial commenting on the recent disenfranchisement media coverage called Danza Johnson's Daily Journal report "the most thorough and flushed-out article." Published by the Daily Mississippian, the student newspaper of the University of Mississippi, the op-ed written by Camron Johnson stated that the Daily Journal piece featured proponents, including The Sentencing Project; opponents, including Roger Clegg; and pertinent bureaucrats and statistics from The Sentencing Project. "We have a mushrooming stigmatized class of people, untouchables, who after serving their time and enduring their punishment are never really allowed to return to society at all," Johnson writes. "Proponents of ex-felon voting bans rely on pigeonholing all former felons as uniformly dangerous and humorously intent on somehow using their votes to change the laws they'd break. Some proponents craft a straw man argument - break the law, then suffer the punishment - as if opponents of the bans are suggesting no punishment at all, instead of what they're actually advocating: amending the nature of the punishment." National: National Black Police Association Supports Automatic Vote Restoration with Resolution The National Black Police Association recently voted to approve a resolution in support of the restoration of voting rights. The NBPA is a nationwide organization of African American Police Associations dedicated to the promotion of justice, fairness, and effectiveness in law enforcement. The resolution reads: "Whereas, the NBPA recognizes that denying the franchise to people who are living in the community serves no law enforcement purpose and violates core principles of democracy and equality ... the NBPA believes that barring people from the political process hinders effective policing by undermining the ability for police to build strong community partnerships." Further, the resolution supports automatic restoration upon prison release. West Virginia: Why Not? In the Charleston Gazette's Reader's Voice, a section giving voice to West Virginia residents on various issues, one reader's comment stated: "I can't understand why a person would say a felon shouldn't vote. It is mean and vindictive to hold people's pasts against them. It is not the Christian way. After all, we are all old sinners saved by grace." Disenfranchisement laws in West Virginia ban those from voting until completion of a prison sentence and parole. - - - - - - Help The Sentencing Project continue to bring you news and updates on disenfranchisement! Make a contribution today. Contact Information -- e-mail: [email protected], web: http://www.sentencingproject.org

Press Release Contact: Luciano Colonna

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 2008 Global Conference On Methamphetamine

Wednesday, June 4, 2008 Chair, Executive Program Committee

+00 (1) 801 635 7736 (USA / MTD, HAR; UTC – 6 hours)

[email protected]

FIRST GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON METHAMPHETAMINE TO CONVENE IN PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC, ON SEPTEMBER 15-16, 2008

Experts in Science, Public Health, Government, Drug Policy, Treatment, Prevention, Law Enforcement, and the Private Sector Will Meet to Examine the Intersection between Methamphetamine, Public Health, Law Enforcement, and Civil Society.

PRAGUE, Czech Republic, June 4 ­­­­-- As the use of methamphetamine and other amphetamine-type stimulants proliferates across the globe, there is an emerging consensus among experts that methamphetamine use is a unique and complex problem that presents a significant challenge to existing philosophies and strategies. The First Global Conference on Methamphetamine will provide an arena for the world’s foremost scientists, leaders and professionals working on issues of drug use to come together to discuss a wide variety of topics centering around methamphetamine. The Conference will take place in Prague’s Historic City Hall on September 15 – 16 (Monday & Tuesday), 2008.

As the first event to gather global experts from a wide diversity of fields, the conference is assured to be an unparalleled event. Confirmed speakers from USA, China, Australia, Thailand, Russia, Canada, Mexico, South Africa, New Zealand, Indonesia, Poland, Iran, Serbia, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Great Britain and the United Nations will address the conference theme of “Science, Strategy and Response.” Representatives from international agencies, civil society, academia, science, law enforcement and others will have the unique opportunity to discuss key issues including: Treatment, HIV, Trafficking, Production, Environmental Impact, Law Enforcement, Policy, Current Research, Regional Updates, and Innovative Global Approaches.

According to estimates by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the World Health Organization (WHO): More individuals worldwide now use stimulants than opiates and cocaine combined. Methamphetamine is the most widely used illicit drug in the world except for cannabis. Over 26 million individuals used amphetamine-type stimulants in 2006.

Established trends show methamphetamine use to be widespread in North American, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand; while India, Pakistan, Eastern Europe, the Russian Federation Sub-Saharan Africa and Western Europe represent emerging markets or areas of perceived risk. Yet the development of appropriate and effective responses to stimulants lags. In most cases, treatment and prevention are inappropriately modeled on opiate and alcohol treatment, ignoring both the physical properties of the drug itself, and the fact that methamphetamine use patterns vary widely, and effective responses must be tailored to the unique needs of regions, cultures, and individual users. A lack of infrastructure, of funding, and of experts trained specifically in methamphetamine response compounds the problem.

As nations struggle to develop appropriate responses to methamphetamine, it is crucial that the most current scientific research, information, and best practices be available to those seeking to implement solutions. The primary goal of the First Global Conference on Methamphetamine is to provide a context for this important work to take place.

Featured Speakers Will Include:

- Apinun Aramrattana, MD, PhD, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai

- Jeremy Douglas. Manager, Global SMART Program, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Vienna

- Ahmed Elkashef, M.D. Division of Pharmacotherapies & Medical Consequences, NIDA, Washington, D.C.

- Carl Hart, PhD, Professor, Neuroscience Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York

- Evgeny Krupitsky, MD, PhD, Prof., Bekhterev Research Psychoneurological Institute, St. Petersburg

- Prof. Lin Lu, MD, PhD, Director, National Institute of Drugs and Development, Beijing

- Donald Rothenbaum, Senior Vice President, Network Environmental Systems, San Diego

- Kasia Malinowska-Sempruch, MSW, Director, Open Society's Institute's Global Drug Policy Program, Warsaw

- Azarakhsh Mokri, MD, Iranian Nation Center for Addiction Studies, Tehran

- Ethan Nadelmann, JD, Executive Director, Drug Policy Alliance, New York

- Caitlin Padgett, Coordinator and Founder of Youth R.I.S.E., Vancouver

- Andreas Plüddemann, Senior Scientist, Alcohol & Drug Abuse Research Unit Medical, Cape Town

- Richard Rawson, PhD, UCLA Integrated Substance Abuse Programs, Los Angeles

- Michael Siever, PhD, Director of The Stonewall Project, San Francisco

- Pavlo Smyrnov, MPH., Deputy Executive Director, International HIV/AIDS Alliance, Kiev

- Alex Wodak, MD, Director, Alcohol and Drug Services Vincent's Hospital, Sydney

- Chris Wilkins, PhD, Senior Researcher & Drugs Team Leader at SHORE/Whariki, Massey University, Auckland - Gady Zabicky, MD, Centro Nacional para la Prevención y Control del VIH/SIDA, Mexico City - Tomas Zabransky, MD, PhD, R and D Manager, Centre for Addictology, Charles University, Prague

FOR MEDIA: The major sessions of the conference are open to reporters. Site visits, photo opportunities and interviews can be arranged. For journalists not traveling to Prague, interviews and briefings with key spokespeople and presenters can be arranged on request.

Sponsors and Partners include: The Czech Republic, Charles University, the City of Prague, Network Environmental Systems, Podane Ruce, Cranstoun Drug Services, Sananim, Institute Scan, Systems, Inc, and The Thorne Group.

Website: www.globalmethamphetamine.com

Contact: Luciano Colonna Chair, Executive Program Committee - 2008 Global Conference On Methamphetamine +00 (1) 801 635 7736 (USA); [email protected]

###

There’s a powerful tool everyone interested in improving drug policy can put to good use, “Google Alerts”. Just visit: http://www.google.com/alerts and type in the information requested. We suggest the search terms (drug) and (marijuana). When you get an alert check out the story, a lot of them allow comments. Voice your opinion by posting comments every chance you get. This is an effective and free way to get the word out about the need for drug policy reform. I’ve been doing this for about a week and I can tell it’s working by the number of hits on our website from areas where I posted comments. Nate Miller, a Legislative Analyst for Marijuana Policy Project suggested using Google Alerts for this purpose. Nate’s been helping us be more effective at implementing drug policy reform. He stressed that public opinion is powerful when it comes to getting politicians to take action and politicians pay great attention to both articles and comments. I chose to include a few facts that a lot of people don’t know and invite readers to visit our website. Here’s a copy of one of my posts, please include a link to our website when you post comments:

Drug prohibition has never worked, from the place of origin to the point of sale there can be up to 17000% markup. People aren’t going to stop dealing when they can get rich selling drugs. We're building 900 new prison beds and hiring 150 more correction officers every two weeks in the USA. We arrest someone on a drug charge every 17 seconds. We jail more people than any nation. We spend $69 billion a year on the drug war. In 1914 when all drugs were legal 1.3% of our population was addicted to drugs, today 1.3% of our population is still addicted to drugs. Over 100,000 people have been killed because of this war on our own citizens. The only way to control drugs is to regulate them and end the profits available to criminals just like ending alcohol prohibition did. No argument justifies devastating society with drug prohibition. Watch the video:

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Once again another life has been needlessly sacrificed in the name of our heinous drug laws. Rachel Hoffman would still be with us today except for the way we choose to deal with drug use and addiction. To Ms. Hoffman’s family and friends, please accept our deepest condolences and heartfelt regret for your loss. The pain and suffering Ms. Hoffman and you have been forced into by those sworn to protect us is inexcusable. This absolutely unnecessary tragedy will not be forgotten. There is no excuse for this. The shameful unfounded defense offered by the authorities attempting to shift responsibility for the tragedy of their own incompetent actions to the victim is nothing short of reprehensible. This story should outrage all of Florida, all the USA and all the world. Florida has some of the toughest drug laws in the country and they have not accomplished any positive results, only harms. The harms of our drug policy are vividly reflected in Ms. Hoffman’s case. By all accounts in the news stories about her, Ms. Hoffman was a vibrant, well educated, well adjusted young woman with a bright future. She was loved by her family, a college graduate, well liked by her peers… in short the reflection of the vast majority of casual drug users. We also learned Ms. Hoffman supported at least two of the drug policy reform organizations we work with. Most people who use drugs are not addicts or criminals by any stretch of the imagination, except that we have allowed their right to ingest certain substances to be criminalized. The results of prohibition are well documented. Any time you prohibit anything you instantly create a black market commerce for that item and the results are always the same… criminals take over the business and violence and death follow. We’ve seen our ridiculous drug policy cause tragedy, corruption, waste of resources, harm to citizens and society beyond imagination and once again needless death. There’s a growing movement to change this but we must all take action or tragedy will continue. Visit our site and take civic actions that will make a difference. Sending an email or making a phone call to your elected representatives can do more good than you might think. If not now, when? If not you, who? Enough is enough! Just shaking your head and saying “that’s a shame” will not stop this. We posted another “Law Enforcement Against Prohibition” video on our home page. Take a few minutes and watch it and then be sure to contact your elected representatives and tell them to end the drug war now! There are much better ways to deal with drug use and addiction without the death, disease, violence, corruption, arrest of 1.9 million non-violent Americans each year and countless other harms directly caused by drug prohibition. Tobacco is the only success story in dealing with drug use. Almost half of all tobacco users have stopped and no one was arrested or killed. These amazing results came about through honest education and regulation not a war on tobacco users. PROHIBITION DOES NOT WORK, NEVER HAS AND NEVER WILL!

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Use this link to locate and contact your congressional representatives. Tell them you are in favor of HR 5842 (medical marijuana patient protection act) and HR 5843: (act to remove federal penalties for the personal use of marijuana by responsible adults). These two important legislative measures will greatly improve the lives of all Americans. HR 5842 Will provide for the medical use of marijuana in accordance with the laws of the various states and HR 5843 will remove federal penalties for the personal use of marijuana by responsible adults.

If clicking the text above doesn’t take you to the web page, copy and paste this into your web browser:

http://capwiz.com/norml2/home/

You can also contact your representatives by calling this number: 202-224-3121.

This is critical! Take action now, don’t wait. Ask all your associates to take action too!

CLICK HERE AND ENTER THE SEARCH WORDS BELOW TO READ THE PROPOSED LEGISLATION THAT NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT:

http://thomas.loc.gov/home/c110query.html

TO READ H.R.5842, SEARCH USING THESE WORDS:

Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act

TO READ H.R.5843, SEARCH USING THESE WORDS:

Act to Remove Federal Penalties for the Personal Use of Marijuana by Responsible Adults