The White House extended an invitation to meet with the leadership of DCMJ, the cannabis legalization organization that successfully worked to pass the Initiative 71, the ballot measure that legalized marijuana in the District of Columbia.
The meeting, set for Monday, April 25, comes in the wake of DCMJ’s peaceful “Reschedule 420” demonstration and non-violent civil disobedience on Pennsylvania Avenue, that featured a 51-foot inflatable joint and drew thousands of activists and supporters, some of whom lit up cannabis in defiance of the federal government listing marijuana as a Schedule One drug.
“DCMJ appreciates greatly the invitation by the Obama administration to begin an educated and passionate dialogue into the need to remove cannabis from the list of Schedule One drugs,” said Adam Eidinger, co-founder of DCMJ. “Thanks to Schedule One of the Controlled Substances Act, Americans, especially people of color, are needlessly incarcerated, and critical medical research into the healing properties of cannabis is placed on hold for no good reason.”
Eidinger added, “We have long been hopeful that this President would be the one who would rectify this unnecessary injustice. Now, as his presidency approaches its twilight, we’re again optimistic that President Obama will take action. That’s the message we plan to convey to his aides when we meet.”
First initiated in 1970 during the Nixon administration, under the Controlled Substance Act, Schedule One recklessly lumps marijuana in with drugs like heroin and Quaaludes.
“This is an opportunity for the White House to meet with serious and committed cannabis activists and hear our case for why it’s in President Obama’s best interest to work with the attorney general to fully remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act, ” said DCMJ, co-founder and communications director, Nikolas Schiller, who will join Eidinger at the White House meeting.
Source: DCMJ – make a donation
