Reflect on our remarkable achievements in 2023 and join us in shaping a better future in 2024. Your support makes a difference!
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Greetings and Happy Holidays,
Looking back on this year, it is hard to not feel a sense of pride for all that our team accomplished. We led the charge on some of the most heated drug policy debates at both the national and state level, and thanks to your support ([link removed]) , our resolve has not wavered.
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** SAM CEO
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Dr. Kevin Sabet testified before the Senate Banking Committee as the sole witness in opposition to the SAFE Banking Act.
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** SAM EVP
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Luke Niforatos speaks with Laura Ingraham about marijuana industry corruption.
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** SAM-funded
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mobile billboard passes the Arkansas state capitol building as part of a successful campaign to ban Delta-8 THC in the state.
In 2023, SAM won every fight in Washington. Marijuana wasn’t rescheduled. Neither SAFE Banking nor any legalization bill came up for a floor vote in either chamber despite being a top priority of the Senate Majority Leader, and a longstanding provision prohibiting marijuana sales in DC remains law. Meanwhile, we made unprecedented progress on several proactive measures. We built a bipartisan, bicameral coalition to ban Delta-8 THC in next year’s Farm Bill, drafted legislation like the Stop Pot Act, and held four bipartisan staff and member briefings. Next year, our focus will continue to be on the potential rescheduling of marijuana and fixing the Farm Bill loophole.
The influence of our grassroots has exploded in the last year thanks to our state affiliates and parent advocates. Our activists sent over 22,000 letters to their legislators and other community stakeholders in 2023. Activism is a core priority of SAM’s Parent Action Network (PAN), which seeks to amplify the voices and stories of parents with children who have experienced the harms of marijuana. This year, PAN parents shared their stories in state and national media outlets, including PAN parent Heather Bacchus, a mother who lost her son to suicide as the result of marijuana-induced psychosis, who was able to share her story
The influence of our grassroots has exploded in the last year thanks to our state affiliates and parent advocates. Our activists sent over 22,000 letters to their legislators and other community stakeholders in 2023. Activism is a core priority of SAM’s Parent Action Network (PAN), which seeks to amplify the voices and stories of parents with children who have experienced the harms of marijuana. This year, PAN parents shared their stories in state and national media outlets, including PAN parent Heather Bacchus, a mother who lost her son to suicide as the result of marijuana-induced psychosis, who shared her story on Fox News ([link removed]) .
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** SAM CEO
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Dr. Kevin Sabet speaks with former ONDCP Director, Gil Kerlikowske at a SAM briefing on the Hill.
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** SAM Government
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Affairs Manager Jordan Davidson speaks to a group of Senate staff at a SAM briefing on the Hill.
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** PAN Director
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Crissy Groenewegen speaks at an event in Arizona.
Parents like Heather are a crucial part of our work because this issue affects real people and real families. Thanks to your support ([link removed]) of SAM, we can not only educate on the scientific harms of marijuana, but we can put a face and a name on the harms of marijuana legalization.
Our team traveled around the globe to speak; this year we spoke in over 30 states and 5 countries. Our work was amplified in numerous publications, including the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the Associated Press, the Washington Times, Politico, Axios, Law360, Fox News, Bloomberg, and more. We had over $11.5 million in earned media coverage and our message reached hundreds of millions of people.
We can continue our work thanks to your generosity. ([link removed]) We don’t accept funding from large corporate interests, including addiction industries or the private prison industry. We are funded by people like you—people who are also concerned about the future of our communities who want our children to grow up without the influence of addiction-for-profit companies.
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During this season of giving, we humbly ask that you think of us and contribute toward our mission ([link removed]) . We are excited to take on 2024 with you.
Thank you for your support.
Happy Holidays,
Dr. Kevin Sabet and the SAM staff
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Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) ([link removed]) 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.
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