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 declaration@icsdp.org 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
Today is Juvenile Justice National Call-in Day
Today's the Day!
Tell Your Congressional Representatives to Make Juvenile Justice a Priority This Year
For too long, "tough on crime" political rhetoric has resulted in juvenile justice policies that are bad for youth and don't keep the public safe. More effective ways to deal with juvenile offenders exist, and now is the time for Congress to take action, but we need your help.
Right now please let Congress know that voters care about juvenile justice reforms.
Three major juvenile justice initiatives remained stalled in the Congress:
· Reauthorizing the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA), which is currently three years overdue for reauthorization. The JJDPA, first enacted in 1974, promotes the use of effective community-based alternatives to detention, keeps youth out of adult facilities, reduces the disproportionate involvement of youth of color in the system, and promotes other research-driven best practices in the juvenile justice system. Call on Congress to reauthorize the JJDPA bill, S. 678.
· Increasing appropriations for juvenile justice programs, which were the only category of children's programs that received a significant decrease in funding in the President's proposed budget. In order for the States to make positive changes, they must receive the federal support they need to prevent youth crime and rehabilitate juvenile offenders. States have experienced a steady decline in funding for juvenile justice programs since 2002. Ask Congress to preserve and increase juvenile justice appropriations for the coming fiscal year.
· Passing the Youth PROMISE Act to promote cost-effective prevention-based strategies to reduce youth crime. Among many improvements to juvenile justice, this legislation allows representatives from the communities facing the greatest juvenile crime challenges to develop a comprehensive plan to prevent youth crime through a coordinated prevention and intervention response.
Action item: Today, contact your two U.S. Senators and your U.S. House Representative and urge them to make juvenile justice a priority in the 111th Congress by:
• Reauthorizing the JJDPA;
• Increasing juvenile justice appropriations; and
• Passing the Youth PROMISE Act.
Click here to contact your Congressional Representative and Senators today. After entering your zip code, you will be provided with the phone numbers for your representatives, along with suggested talking points and a feedback form to report on the response you received.
Thank you for your help.
The Sentencing Project is located at 1705 DeSales Street, NW 8th Floor, Washington, DC 20036. Send an email to The Sentencing Project.
The Sentencing Project is a national, non-profit organization engaged in research and advocacy for criminal justice reform.
Reminder: Wednesday is Juvenile Justice National Call-in Day
Reminder: Wednesday July 7, 2010
Tell Your Congressional Representatives to Make Juvenile Justice a Priority This Year
For too long, "tough on crime" political rhetoric has resulted in juvenile justice policies that are bad for youth and don't keep the public safe. More effective ways to deal with juvenile offenders exist, and now is the time for Congress to take action, but we need your help.
Time is running out! On July 7, please let Congress know that voters care about juvenile justice reforms.
Three major juvenile justice initiatives remained stalled in the Congress:
· Reauthorizing the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA), which is currently three years overdue for reauthorization. The JJDPA, first enacted in 1974, promotes the use of effective community-based alternatives to detention, keeps youth out of adult facilities, reduces the disproportionate involvement of youth of color in the system, and promotes other research-driven best practices in the juvenile justice system. Call on Congress to reauthorize the JJDPA bill, S. 678.
· Increasing appropriations for juvenile justice programs, which were the only category of children's programs that received a significant decrease in funding in the President's proposed budget. In order for the States to make positive changes, they must receive the federal support they need to prevent youth crime and rehabilitate juvenile offenders. States have experienced a steady decline in funding for juvenile justice programs since 2002. Ask Congress to preserve and increase juvenile justice appropriations for the coming fiscal year.
· Passing the Youth PROMISE Act to promote cost-effective prevention-based strategies to reduce youth crime. Among many improvements to juvenile justice, this legislation allows representatives from the communities facing the greatest juvenile crime challenges to develop a comprehensive plan to prevent youth crime through a coordinated prevention and intervention response.
Action item: On July 7th, contact your two U.S. Senators and your U.S. House Representative and urge them to make juvenile justice a priority in the 111th Congress by:
• Reauthorizing the JJDPA;
• Increasing juvenile justice appropriations; and
• Passing the Youth PROMISE Act.
Click here to contact your Congressional Representative and Senators on Wednesday. After entering your zip code, you will be provided with the phone numbers for your representatives, along with suggested talking points and a feedback form to report on the response you received.
Thank you for your help.
The Sentencing Project is located at 1705 DeSales Street, NW 8th Floor, Washington, DC 20036. Send an email to The Sentencing Project.
The Sentencing Project is a national, non-profit organization engaged in research and advocacy for criminal justice reform.
Sign the Vienna Declaration
Help Us Stop Drug Testing!
Please make a contribution and help SSDP stop drug testing.
Dear friends,
Please see the video below for an update about a terrible drug testing amendment in Congress ... and find out how you can help us stop it!
Will you help us continue our important work in Washington by making a one time donation today or becoming a monthly donor to SSDP?
Soon, SSDP will finalizing our strategy for the year at our annual retreat. I'm excited about all of the possibilities and to tell you about our plans. Stay tuned...
Sincerely,
Aaron Houston
Executive Director
Students for Sensible Drug Policy
Take Action Update: Your Calls Were Heard! Now Make One More
Call-in Day Update
Thank you for joining today's National Call-in Day. Majority Leader Reid and Senator Durbin have heard you loud and clear. We received word that they got the message and know you support S. 714, the National Criminal Justice Commission Act.
If you have not yet called today, you can take Senators Durbin and Reid off your list and add Senator Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), who is the Republican Whip.
REVISED TARGETS:
· Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), (202) 224-4521
· Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), (202) 224-3135
(If you already called Minority Leader McConnell, no need to call again.)
MESSAGE TO SENATORS:
Please support S. 714, the National Criminal Justice Commission Act, because:
• Having a transparent and bipartisan Commission review and identify effective criminal justice policies would increase public safety.
• The increase in incarceration over the past twenty years has stretched the system beyond its limits. The high cost to taxpayers is unsustainable, especially during these times of economic downturn.
• The proposed commission would conduct a comprehensive national review and would issue recommendations for reform.
The Sentencing Project is located at 1705 DeSales Street, NW 8th Floor, Washington, DC 20036. Send an email to The Sentencing Project.
The Sentencing Project is a national, non-profit organization engaged in research and advocacy for criminal justice reform.
Action Alert: Demand Criminal Justice Reform!
Tell Congress to pass the National Criminal Justice Commission Act!
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:
ASA Fighting for Patients in Washington, DC
Dear friends,
Help us improve the new DC regulations to protect patients' rights.
The District Council approved a landmark ordinance regulating medical cannabis dispensaries this week, but there is still important work to be done to ensure the new regulations work for patients in Washington, DC. There is only a short time to influence Mayor Fenty and the Department of Health to improve this ordinance. Can you make a contribution today, so that ASA can keep fighting for safe access in Washington, DC?
Voters approved Initiative 59 legalizing medical cannabis in 1998, but Congress blocked its implementation until December of last year. Since then, ASA has been talking with District Council members about regulations to protect safe access and patients' rights. We succeeded in improving early drafts of the ordinance. However, we must still persuade the Mayor to increase the amount of cannabis patients can acquire from the five authorized dispensaries. We must also keep working to authorize personal cultivation by individual patients and protect them from discrimination in employment, housing, and other areas.
ASA has the only office in Washington, DC, dedicated exclusively to medical cannabis patients, and our staff in DC has been hard at work making sure that there is real access in our Nation's Capitol. The final regulations must be approved by the US Congress, and we will use this ordinance as a chance to talk to federal lawmakers about a national strategy to provide medical cannabis to every American who needs it.
ASA is committed to championing regulations that serve the interests of patients first. That is why we are determined to keep pushing for improvements in the new ordinance in Washington, DC - just like we are doing in cities nationwide. We need your help to bring the patients' voices to the table in these debates… and we need it now!
Thank you for helping!
Steph Sherer
Executive Director
Donate now at:safeaccessnow.org/donate
Americans for Safe Access
On The Web:
ASA's Mission
ASA Forums
ASA Blog
Take Action
ASA's Online Store
Standing in Our Way
You Can Make a Difference
Dear friends,
Tell the Senate not to confirm Bush holdover Michele Leonhart as DEA administrator.
We’re making amazing progress toward ending the war on marijuana, but a major obstacle stands in our way — Michele Leonhart. The DEA’s acting administrator is a Bush holdover who’s blocked scientific research and overseen dozens of medical marijuana raids.
Now sick and disabled veterans are suffering because of her hardline stance against medical marijuana patients. We can’t tolerate a DEA administrator with such backwards ideas.
Under Michele Leonhart’s direction, the DEA is advising the Veterans Administration (VA) to prohibit its doctors from recommending medical marijuana to their patients, even in states where it’s legal.
A Bush holdover is standing in the way of reform, and we need to stop her. The Senate will soon consider whether to confirm her as the permanent administrator of the DEA. Urge the Senate to block her nomination.
VA doctors are barred from recommending medical marijuana even though many veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, chronic pain and other ailments have found that it’s the best medicine for their symptoms.
Veterans who survived the wars abroad have returned home only to become victims of the war on drugs. Urge the Senate to demand a new DEA administrator.
Sincerely,
Bill Piper
Director, Office of National Affairs
Drug Policy Alliance Network
Last chance to act: D.C. medical marijuana law likely to be finalized Tuesday
Marijuana Policy Project Alert
April 28, 2010
Last chance to act: D.C. medical marijuana law likely to be finalized Tuesday
Please contact your councilmembers and ask them to offer needed amendments to the bill
Dear friends:
The wait is nearly over. Eleven years after D.C. voters demanded it, medical marijuana is finally coming to the District. And while we’re all excited to see the program finally approved, the bill now being considered includes a few areas of concern for patients who could benefit from medical marijuana and voters who approved a program now being altered by the Council. Please get in touch with your councilmembers and urge them to offer an amendment to address one or more of these potential pitfalls:
- Unlike patients who use more dangerous medicines like Oxycontin, medical marijuana patients will only be allowed to medicate in their homes or approved medical facilities. A simple ban on public smoking would be a better alternative.
- Patients can only use marijuana or paraphernalia obtained from a licensed dispensary. Since no one can predict when, or even if, the program will be able to produce enough medical marijuana to meet demand, patients should not be criminalized for acquiring marijuana through a caregiver or other means. Further, there’s no rational reason to force patients who already own a vaporizer or other working device to purchase a new, unnecessary one from a dispensary.
- Cultivation centers are limited to 95 plants. This limitation has been a proven policy failure in New Mexico, where patients continue to report an inability to procure medicine at a reasonable price, if at all. This limitation will discourage responsible investors while simultaneously creating a need for dozens of cultivation centers in order to meet demand.
- Severe and/or chronic pain is not a qualified medical condition. All but one of the 14 existing and functional medical marijuana laws covers severe and/or chronic pain. The consensus among the scientific community is that marijuana can be effective in pain treatment, so there’s no reason to criminalize patients who need marijuana to treat severe, chronic pain.
- The original "Initiative 59" also allowed patients to cultivate their own medicine, but under this bill home cultivation won’t be allowed until at least 2012, if at all.
It will only take you a minute to use our simple automated program to send a message to your councilmembers, but please don’t stop there. Call their offices and have a conversation – you can even request a meeting to discuss the bill in person. There are only a few days left for you to make a difference, so please take the time to get in touch with your councilmembers. At-large members Kwame Brown, David Catania, Phil Mendelson, Michael Brown, and Chairman Vincent Gray represent all D.C. residents. You can find your ward-specific member here.
We expect the Council to take a final vote on the measure Tuesday, May 4. That means you have less than one week to make a difference. We have to get this right. A medical marijuana program in our nation’s capital will influence the future of medical marijuana around the country. Legislators from all 36 states yet to enact an effective medical marijuana law will likely point to elements of D.C.’s program when considering legislation in their home states.
Thanks for your time and all your support. After you’ve talked with your councilmembers, forward this e-mail to friends in the District and ask them to do the same.
Thanks again,
Dan Riffle
Legislative Analyst
Marijuana Policy Project
Help fund MPP's projects
MPP hopes that each of the 100,000 subscribers on our national e-mail list will make at least one financial donation to MPP's work in 2010. Please click here to donate now.
MPP depends on the support of you and our other allies to fund our work. Together we
will change marijuana laws.
Popular Links:
· MPP blog
· MPP TV
· FAQ
· State-by-state medical marijuana laws
· About the Marijuana Policy Project
Small Print …
To contact MPP, please click here or reply to this e-mail. Our mailing address is:
MPP
236 Massachusetts Ave. NE, #400
Washington, DC 20002
We are required by federal law to tell you that any donations you make to MPP may be used for political purposes, such as supporting or opposing candidates for federal office.
