VISIT: www.drcnet.org/medmjaction/
9/22/99
Dear friend:
On a cold November day last year -- Election Day -- I
stood outside a downtown polling station, leafleting and
speaking with fellow Washington, D.C. residents about I-59,
a ballot initiative to legalize medical use of marijuana in
the District of Columbia and prevent medical marijuana
patients from being sent to prison. That night, I waited
with my fellow activists for results of similar initiatives
taking place in several states across the nation.
The news was good -- medical marijuana passed
everywhere, and comfortably. But the results of D.C.'s own
medical marijuana initiative -- the one I had volunteered
and voted for myself -- were kept secret, and would be kept
secret for more than ten months. Congress had passed a law,
introduced by Rep. Bob Barr (R-GA), that prohibited the D.C.
government from spending any funds to count or certify the
results of the medical marijuana vote -- not even the
estimated $1.74 of staff time it would have taken to push
the button and have the computer print them out.
Last week, a federal judge ruled that the Barr amendment
is unconstitutional, and ordered D.C. election officials to
count and certify the vote, an order with which they happily
complied. The results were overwhelming, though not
unexpected -- 69% of D.C. voters voted yes for medical
marijuana, the same percentage found in an exit poll
commissioned by Americans for Medical Rights.
But Barr and his fellow hard-liners haven't given up,
and even now are plotting to overturn D.C.'s long-awaited
medical marijuana law -- and the U.S. Constitution gives
them that power, if they act within 30 working days. That's
why we need you to take action, and tell your U.S.
Representative and your two Senators to respect the will of
the voters and let D.C.'s medical marijuana law stand!
Please visit www.drcnet.org/medmjaction/ to send
an e-mail or fax to Congress. You can also use our site to
find out your reps' phone numbers, to call them, for even
more impact. And please forward this alert, or use the
"tell-a-friend" page on the web site, to let as many people
know about this important issue and how they can help. And
please take action now -- though Congress has 30 working
days, they could vote on this at any time, so please write
Congress today!
Sincerely,
David Borden (borden@drcnet.org)
Executive Director
Drug Reform Coordination Network
www.drcnet.org
P.S. For further information, please visit the web sites of
two organizations that worked hard to pass I-59 by a wide
margin: ACTUP DC, the initiative's sponsors, online at
www.actupdc.org and the Marijuana Policy Project,
online at www.mpp.org. For extensive information
on the evidence relating to medical marijuana, visit the AMR-
affiliated web site www.medmjscience.org
9/22/99
Dear friend:
On a cold November day last year -- Election Day -- I
stood outside a downtown polling station, leafleting and
speaking with fellow Washington, D.C. residents about I-59,
a ballot initiative to legalize medical use of marijuana in
the District of Columbia and prevent medical marijuana
patients from being sent to prison. That night, I waited
with my fellow activists for results of similar initiatives
taking place in several states across the nation.
The news was good -- medical marijuana passed
everywhere, and comfortably. But the results of D.C.'s own
medical marijuana initiative -- the one I had volunteered
and voted for myself -- were kept secret, and would be kept
secret for more than ten months. Congress had passed a law,
introduced by Rep. Bob Barr (R-GA), that prohibited the D.C.
government from spending any funds to count or certify the
results of the medical marijuana vote -- not even the
estimated $1.74 of staff time it would have taken to push
the button and have the computer print them out.
Last week, a federal judge ruled that the Barr amendment
is unconstitutional, and ordered D.C. election officials to
count and certify the vote, an order with which they happily
complied. The results were overwhelming, though not
unexpected -- 69% of D.C. voters voted yes for medical
marijuana, the same percentage found in an exit poll
commissioned by Americans for Medical Rights.
But Barr and his fellow hard-liners haven't given up,
and even now are plotting to overturn D.C.'s long-awaited
medical marijuana law -- and the U.S. Constitution gives
them that power, if they act within 30 working days. That's
why we need you to take action, and tell your U.S.
Representative and your two Senators to respect the will of
the voters and let D.C.'s medical marijuana law stand!
Please visit www.drcnet.org/medmjaction/ to send
an e-mail or fax to Congress. You can also use our site to
find out your reps' phone numbers, to call them, for even
more impact. And please forward this alert, or use the
"tell-a-friend" page on the web site, to let as many people
know about this important issue and how they can help. And
please take action now -- though Congress has 30 working
days, they could vote on this at any time, so please write
Congress today!
Sincerely,
David Borden (borden@drcnet.org)
Executive Director
Drug Reform Coordination Network
www.drcnet.org
P.S. For further information, please visit the web sites of
two organizations that worked hard to pass I-59 by a wide
margin: ACTUP DC, the initiative's sponsors, online at
www.actupdc.org and the Marijuana Policy Project,
online at www.mpp.org. For extensive information
on the evidence relating to medical marijuana, visit the AMR-
affiliated web site www.medmjscience.org
