February, 15 2012, 08:34am EDT
Medical Marijuana Activists to Protest Obama's DOJ Crackdown Thursday in 9 Cities, 6 States
SAN FRANCISCO
Medical marijuana activists are planning to protest the Obama Administration's attack on medical marijuana states this Thursday by staging protests in 9 cities and 6 states. Rallies are planned to take place at an Obama fundraiser in San Francisco, as well as at the president's campaign headquarters in Sacramento (CA) and San Diego (CA), and at federal buildings in several cities, including Trenton (NJ), Phoenix (AZ), Seattle (WA), Eugene (OR), and Portland (ME).
For detailed information on Thursday (2/16) rally times and locations, see: https://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/MMWRallyLocations
The rallies are an attempt to draw attention to Obama's failure at keeping his promise not to "circumvent" state medical marijuana laws and to highlight the unprecedented attack on patients and their providers across the country. During Obama's tenure in office, his Justice Department has conducted nearly 200 SWAT-style raids on legitimate dispensaries and growers, resulting in more than 60 federal indictments, costing the taxpayers tens of millions of dollars at a time of fiscal crisis.
The Obama Administration has also employed numerous federal agencies, including the DEA, FBI, ATF, VA, and IRS to shut down access to medical marijuana, and cut-off services for, or otherwise discriminate against, literally hundreds of thousands of patients across the country. "President Obama's most widespread and cynical attack so far has been direct threats from more than a dozen of his U.S. Attorneys against elected officials in at least 10 medical marijuana states," said Steph Sherer, Executive Director of Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the country's leading medical marijuana advocacy group, which is organizing Thursday's protests.
"The literal and figurative assault on medical marijuana patients currently underway by the Obama Administration is unprecedented in this country's history, despite hollow proclamations to the contrary," continued Sherer. "The intensity and breadth of the attacks has far surpassed anything we saw under the Bush Administration and has resulted in the roll-back of numerous local and state laws." The latest attack came this week from the U.S. Attorney for Delaware whose threats have suspended that state's medical marijuana program.
Patient advocates are calling on Obama to end his attacks on the medical marijuana community and begin to address this issue from a public health standpoint. In addition to keeping his pledge of deprioritizing enforcement, advocates are encouraging Obama to reschedule marijuana for medical use. ASA is currently litigating the rescheduling issue in the D.C. Circuit and has also filed a separate lawsuit challenging the Obama Administration's violation of the Tenth Amendment by derailing state medical marijuana laws.
Further information:
Rally locations and times: https://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/MMWRallyLocations
Rally signs: https://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/downloads/MMJProtest_Signs.pdf
Americans for Safe Access is the nation's largest organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research.
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