MAPP Newsletter; Plea to Californian's...2/10/13
During the California Supreme Court deliberations on Tuesday, Feb. 5 whether cities can ban collectives, the rights and needs of patients to be able to obtain medicinal marijuana safely, reliably and most importantly locally was hardly even considered. Except for one brief moment when Justice Kathryn Mickle Werdega stated "If all counties throughout the state ban it ... the purpose (of the state law) is thwarted."
Everything else argued in court that morning was all just esoteric legal mumbo-jumbo about the rights of cities and nothing about the rights of patients. The court seems totally unaware or uncaring of what the ramifications of allowing cities to ban will have. We need to bring it to their attention and we need to do it right now.
[align=center] We can do it and by so doing we can provide the court with the reason and rationale for deciding cities cannot ban. Here??s how.[/align]
We are asking medical marijuana patients to send an email letter to the California Supreme Court telling the Justices who they are, why they use medicinal marijuana and how if cities are allowed to ban collectives, you will have to deal with criminals to get marijuana if you can get it at all. To do this, all you have to do is CLICK HERE ([email protected]) to send us the information to include in the letters we are sending the court justices. If you can and are willing to, you should attach a picture of yourself to the email, but a picture is not necessary if you don??t have one or do not want to send one.
When you finish the letter, put a few words in the subject line that describes your feelings and then send the email to CLICK HERE ([email protected]). As you can tell from the email address, the email won??t go to the Supreme Court, it will come to the Inland Empire Patients Health and Wellness Center, the collective whose case now before the Supreme Court will decide if cities can or cannot ban. When they receive your email, they will transpose it and print it onto a sheet of paper. Every time they have letters from 50 patients, they will mail the packet of letters to each Justice on the Supreme Court. They want to mail several hundred over the next couple weeks, but to succeed they need your help and your help is NEEDED NOW!
Printed below are a couple sample letters to give you an idea of what to write. These letters are only a guide ?? feel free to write whatever you want. Although keeping it short is always a good idea, if you want to write a lengthy letter, please do so. These letters will definitely be seen by the clerks of each Justice and no doubt some will be selected for the Judges to review.
It is these letters that will help the Justices understand the ramifications of their rulings on real-world patients. It is these letters that will help them understand the true meaning behind the Legislative Intent of SB420 to ??Enhance the access of patients and caregivers to medical marijuana through collective, cooperative cultivation projects.?
Allowing cities to ban will force many patients to turn to illegal sources of marijuana, putting them in harm??s way and causing an increase in crime in our communities. None of this would happen if marijuana was available in the regulated way intended by the State Legislature in passing SB 420 and AB1300.
It is your letters that will help the Justices understand that allowing cities to pass bans not only defeats the intent of the Legislature to allow patients to form collectives and coops, but will have debilitating effects on their health in so many different ways.
Please don??t put this off. We need to get the letters in quickly. Write your email now and send it off now. It is your letter and the letters of other patients that will persuade the court that banning is not only contrary to the law, but contrary to the humanitarian principles of our state.
Remember when sending your email to attach a picture if you can.If you don??t have a pic, please still send the email. Your email address will be printed on your letter sheet and you may very well get a reply from the Supreme Court. If you want to provide other contact information such as your address and/or phone number (who knows they might call you), please include it in the body of your letter.
[align=center] [HR] [/align]
Sample Letter 1
I use marijuana to treat my ______________. I have found it very effective as it reduces my need for many of the drugs I had been taking without any negative side effects. It is has made my life much better and I would not be as healthy without it.
Although my city has banned collectives, I have been getting my marijuana from a local dispensary where I live. If this dispensary closes and all the others located near me close as well, I will have to travel almost ________ miles to get to a city that I believe will continue to allow collectives to operate. That??s a long way to drive and most times I will have to find people near where I live who are illegally selling marijuana. This can be dangerous and I do not have to worry about this when I go to my local collective.
Please do not allow cities to ban. I have no problem with them being regulated, but please do not allow them to be totally banned.
Sincerely,
Your Name
[align=center] [HR] [/align]
Sample Letter 2
If you allow cities to ban collectives, there will be no collectives anywhere near where I live. I cannot grow my own because I live in an apartment (rented or leased home or other) and my lease could be terminated and I would be evicted if I were to grow my own medicine. (You can list other reasons ?? no place to grow, live with my family, not capable of growing etc.)
Prop. 215 gave us the right to this medicine and the Legislature gave us a way to get it. Please do not allow cities to take that right away. I need it for my _____________________________ and if there are no collectives, this ban would force me to to consider having to find my medicine from unsafe and illegal drug criminals. _____________ (name your city or county) has already banned (Or attempting to ban) collectives. I should not have to do this, but that is what will happen if you allow cities to ban collectives.
Sincerely,
Your Name
[align=center] [HR] [/align]
This letters are just a guide ?? it would be best if you rewrite them in your own words. In your letters, do not hesitate to go at length about how marijuana eases your pain, nausea, insomnia, MS or whatever it is. They need to understand the importance of marijuana to your health as well as the importance of having safe, reliable and LOCAL access.
OK ?? open up your email account, write your letter and send it off to CLICK HERE ([email protected]) and don??t forget to include that photo of you so they can put a face to the letter they have just read and develop the empathy and compassion that should be at the core of every Supreme Court Justice.
[align=center] SEND EMAIL HERE[/align]
[align=center] [HR] [/align]
[align=center] EXAMPLE EXAMPLE EXAMPLE[/align]
[align=center] A Sample of what your letter will look like when delivered California Supreme Court:[/align]
Please consider the ramifications of your decision on patients
Patient Name: Jane Doe
Email Address: [email protected]
If you allow cities to ban collectives, there will be no collectives anywhere near where I live. I cannot grow my own because I live in an apartment where I could have my lease terminated and be evicted. Plus my condition doesn't allow me to handle this kind of physical activity.
Prop. 215 gave us the right to this medicine and the Legislature gave us a way to get it. Please do not allow cities to take that right away. I need it for my treatment for Lymph Node Cancer and if there are no collectives, they will be forcing me to get it from criminals. Riverside is attempting to ban collectives. I should not have to do this, but that is what will happen if you allow cities to ban collectives. I find it offensive and troubling that my city and police force are so concerned with their own agendas that they have REFUSED to consider the patients! We are real people, honest law abiding people and tax paying citizens of this state! I implore you to do what is right to protect the patients and Prop 215.
Sincerely,
Jane Doe
[align=center] [HR] [/align]
[align=center] HELP SPREAD THE WORD.
SHARE THIS URGENT CAMPAIGN WITH ALL YOUR FRIENDS![/align]
[align=center] [/align]
[HR] [align=center]
[/align]
Steph Sherer, Executive Director of Americans for Safe Access, is our featured guest on the Monday, Feb. 11, 6 p.m. broadcast and simulcast of Marijuana Compassion and Common Sense.Founded in 2002, Americans for Safe Access is the largest organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis. They describe their organization as ??a multifaceted strategy of public education, impact litigation, grassroots development and advocacy, media campaigns, and direct support services.?
Steph Sherer is a medical marijuana patient with over eleven years of experience servicing and managing non-profit businesses and community organizations. She has worked with a vast array of community programs. A powerful advocate, a skilled spokesperson, and an energetic initiator of campaigns, Steph is a nationally recognized activist in the global justice movement and has received several community awards for work including the San Diego Peacemaker of the Year Award in 2003. She is a guest lecturer at University California, Berkeley and George Washington University, DC.
Yet as Executive Director of ASA she has become the whipping girl for all things upside-down by some movement activists.
We will explore ASA??s programs to enhance the legal status of medical marijuana including their current plan of action working in conjunction with the United Food and Commercial Workers Union to implement some kind of state wide regulations and undercut the police orchestrated ban hysteria sweeping the state.
Steph will also provide information on ASA??s major upcoming conference in Washington D.C. scheduled for Feb. 22-25. The conference features many of the most important movers and shakers in the movement plus elected officials and other representatives of both business and government. It is a high powered major conference that you need to know about.
Join Steph along with our usual cannabis enthused crew of Uncle Ronnie, Kali Smith and myself for the Monday, Feb. 11, 6 p.m. broadcast of Marijuana Compassion and Common Sense on IE Talk Radio KCAA 1050AM and simulcast at www.kcaaradio.com. Tell your friends, family members and co-workers to tune in every Monday at 6 p.m. to Marijuana and Compassion and Common Sense, the show that tells the truth about marijuana.
