Schwarzenegger Asked to Resist Federal Interference in Medical Marijuana Program
In response to the dramatic increase in federal raids on California's medical marijuana patients and caregivers, Americans for Safe Access this month organized a campaign to convince Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to stand up for his state's most vulnerable citizens.
The campaign—which included more than 40,000 postcards to the Governor, as well as hundreds of phone calls and emails, all urging him to take action to defend patients' rights—included a meeting with a representative of the governor on October 5. Governor Schwarzenegger's chief advisor for health and transportation spent an hour with ASA Executive Director Steph Sherer and ASA California Director Don Duncan, discussing how medical marijuana patients and providers in California are being victimized in the state-federal conflict. The advisor assured them that the governor's office has received hundreds of cards from ASA supporters and is well aware of the issue. ASA's constituents have the governor's ear, she said, and the governor is listening.
Six days after the meeting, more than 300 medical marijuana patients and advocates gathered at the governor's Los Angeles office for a rally urging the governor to act.
People began gathering in front of the governor's office over an hour before the event. By the time the rally began, the crowd took up almost the entire block, spilling into the streets and chanting, "support patients' rights, stand up and fight," and "we're patients, not criminals!" Many held movie-marquee style signs with such slogans as “Coming Soon: The Gov. in End of DEA Days.”
The rally drew 300
The Los Angeles City Council was represented at the rally by Brian Perry, a staff member in Council Member Dennis Zine's office, who read a prepared statement, saying, "this year has seen a dramatic increase in federal law enforcement activity surrounding medical cannabis, including raids, confiscation of medicine and plants, and indictments." Council member Zine, a former Los Angeles police officer, has been leading the City Council in working on city regulations for the operation of medical marijuana dispensaries. The LA City Council has publicly condemned the recent federal raids and asked the DEA to not interfere as the regulatory process goes forward.
Orange County Supervisor Chris Norby also sent a statement of support, and other speakers included Sherer, Duncan and Michael Martin, the former medical marijuana edible maker who was recently raided by the DEA. The rally ended on a somber note, as the crowd went silent to hear medical marijuana patient Stephanie Landa, 60, say a few words by speakerphone from federal prison, where she is serving a 41-month sentence. The rally got extensive coverage from local LA media, which reaches 10 million people.
Advocates are also urging the governor to discourage state and local law enforcement agencies from cooperating with federal medical marijuana raids. Governor Schwarzeneg-ger is also being encouraged to join New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson and other governors in states with medical marijuana laws to change federal policy.
This year alone, the DEA and other federal agencies have conducted more than 44 raids of California patients and providers, more than double the number of the two previous years.
Meanwhile, Governor Schwarzenegger has allocated more than $1 million to fund a statewide ID card program, and the state has established sales tax rules for dispensaries. Since 1996, more than 30 cities and counties have adopted regulations for dispensaries.
ASA's campaign will continue until the governor takes action to stop federal interference in California's medical marijuana program. See: americansforsafeaccess.org. |
