Dear friends,

Congress let politics trump public health when it banned funding for syringe exchange programs, despite volumes of scientific evidence that these programs save lives and money.

Now, for the first time since the 1980s, you and I finally have the chance to end this backwards ban.

Repealing the ban could come up for a vote in the House THIS WEEK. We can't afford to wait another twenty years, so let's tell Congress to save lives by ending the syringe exchange funding ban now.

Syringe exchange programs reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS by making sterile syringes widely available, but states are banned from using their share of federal HIV/AIDS prevention money on these programs.

Repealing the ban costs no taxpayer money but will save lives.

Tens of thousands of people have contracted HIV unnecessarily since this ban was put in place in the 1980s, and many of them are dead now — all because politicians wanted to "send a message" about drug use.

You can help save lives AND dismantle a hysterical drug war policy. Join me in telling Congress to repeal the syringe exchange funding ban today!

Sincerely,

 

Dear Friends:

Yesterday, Congressman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives to eliminate all federal penalties for marijuana possession. This came only one week after he also introduced a bill to protect medical marijuana patients.

Would you please take one minute to ask your U.S. representative to support these two bills? MPP's easy online action center makes it simple — just enter your name and contact info, and we'll do the rest.

The Personal Use of Marijuana by Responsible Adults Act of 2009 would eliminate the threat of federal arrest and prison for the possession of up to 3.5 ounces of marijuana and the not-for-profit transfer of an ounce of marijuana — nationwide.

What's more, last week Congressman Frank introduced the Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act, which would allow states to protect medical marijuana patients from arrest and jail without federal interference, as well as allow pharmacies to dispense marijuana to patients with a doctor's recommendation. You can take action on this bill here.

MPP has worked closely with Congressman Frank's staff in past months, helping to craft both pieces of legislation and build political support for the proposals on Capitol Hill.

Now members of Congress need to hear from their constituents who want to see it passed — that means you! It takes only a minute or two to use MPP's online action system to send a quick note to your member of the House, so would you please send your letter right now?

Eliminate threat of federal arrest and prison for marijuana possession

Protect medical marijuana patients nationwide

Thank you so much for your help.

Sincerely,

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

Act Now to Protect Medical Cannabis Patients:
Tell Your U.S. Representative to Support HR 2835!

Dear Friends:

Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) today vetoed the medical marijuana bill just passed by the Minnesota Legislature.

MPP has been lobbying in Minnesota for five years, pushing our medical marijuana bill closer and closer to passing. The Senate passed our bill on May 4, and on Monday, the House followed suit … the first time a medical marijuana bill has been debated on the floor of the Minnesota House in history.

However, because the governor had been threatening a veto, the House narrowed the scope of the bill, hoping to find common ground with the governor and start protecting Minnesota's patients from arrest and jail. The final version of the bill was watered down beyond what any medical marijuana advocates wanted to see — in its ultimate version protecting only terminally ill patients.

And yet disgustingly, the governor still vetoed it, while simultaneously claiming that he “has great empathy for the sick” … the same sick and dying people he has now sentenced to arrest and jail.

Disgusted? Me too.

It's not going to end here. Every recent poll shows that Minnesotans support medical marijuana by a 2-to-1 margin, and if the governor won't listen to them, we can bypass him entirely. In Minnesota, constitutional amendments bypass the governor and are instead ratified by voters after passing the legislature. We can lobby next year to pass a constitutional amendment for a comprehensive medical marijuana law that would appear on the state's November 2010 ballot.

But that would mean going from our lobbying campaign in the legislature — which was expensive but affordable — to a ballot initiative campaign, which would require statewide advertising, which is much more expensive. What do you think? Should we should stand up and fight? Taking the battle to the next level will cost more but would be the only way forward.

If you're outraged by the governor's cruelty and want to gird for the next stage of battle, can you help us show the governor and other prohibitionists like him that their time is past? We can win — just like we've won in other states  — but we need your help to do it.

Thank you,

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $2.35 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2009. This means that your donation today will be doubled.