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Dear Friend,

Tomorrow is Giving Tuesday, and thanks to a very generous donor your donation will be matched, dollar for dollar, up to $1,000,000. 

Your gift today will have twice the impact to help us influence policy through evidence and powerful testimonials, like Marcus’ story. Marcus is a brilliant young man who recently came to work for us after his horrifying experience with Cannabis Use Disorder, an ordeal that led him to wanting to create real change in the field of addiction and mental health. We are lucky to have Marcus on our team as of this month, and his story is just one of thousands we hear about on a regular basis. Together, we are helping Americans see through the fraud and hopelessness that represents marijuana and other drug commercialization.  

One example of our impact is Measure 110: Oregon’s decriminalization law that was passed in 2020 by a few big funders. As a result of this poorly written law, Oregon’s overdose rates are skyrocketing. Through our work and funding, we’ve been able to show support for the law has fallen dramatically—and we’re currently part of the steering committee working on a major rewrite and possible repeal.

As our opponents ramp up their efforts to push their dangerous policies and use misinformation as talking points, your involvement will help us counter everything they do and push forward with passion and fact.  Another example: Last month our efforts resulted in the publishing of a Federal Reserve of Kansas City study that confirmed sharp increases in homelessness, arrests and chronic drug use disorders following legalization.  Furthermore, they confirmed that any economic promises made by legalization are overshadowed by increased public safety costs.  Your giving helps us continue to get this information to our partners to fight legalization everywhere. 

On the national level, your support has made the so-called SAFER Banking Act essentially dead on arrival.  The generosity of our community of support made it possible for me to testify as the sole witness before the Senate Banking Committee and create grassroots opposition to this bill that has both influenced public opinion and helped changed legislator’s minds, resulting in a loss of support that will make SAFER Banking unable to pass the Senate.  We did not do this alone.  You were with us every step of the way and we thank you for your partnership.

There’s no need to wait until tomorrow.  Give today, get involved and help us continue to succeed on the local, state and federal levels as we strive to create an addiction-free future for our communities, our children and ourselves. 

Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) is an alliance of organizations and individuals dedicated to a health-first approach to marijuana policy. We are professionals working in mental health and public health. We are bipartisan. We are medical doctors, lawmakers, treatment providers, preventionists, teachers, law enforcement officers and others who seek a middle road between incarceration and legalization. Our commonsense, third-way approach to marijuana policy is based on reputable science and sound principles of public health and safety.