View this email in your browser

Friends and supporters, 

This week, the Biden Administration announced their intent to move marijuana from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III drug, a mostly symbolic decision that will allow the marijuana industry to claim that marijuana carries little risk of addiction – something we know is demonstrably false.

The question is, what fallout will result from this decision? Marijuana will not be legalized. We will see no benefits to social justice, nor will moving marijuana to Schedule III expunge anyone convicted of a marijuana-related crime.  

The biggest win would be for the industry: Schedule III drug advertisement can be written off on taxes as a business expense. This means we will continue to see disadvantaged communities targeted by the marijuana industry, but now they will become even more vulnerable to marijuana advertising. Marijuana-induced mental health disorders will continue, and our children will be exposed to more marijuana imagery. The rescheduling of marijuana will cause communities to suffer while big marijuana makes more profit for itself and its supporters. 

Photo credit: NBC Nightly News

All options are on the table for opposing this move; SAM and our allies are poised to stand against this. To empower our allies, challenge this decision in court and inform decision-makers, SAM has launched a rescheduling legal defense fund. Through the legal defense fund, SAM will work to change minds within our government and, if needed, present a legal challenge to the rescheduling of marijuana.  

As we work against the addiction-for-profit schemes of big marijuana, you can follow our efforts to stop rescheduling by visiting our Rescheduling Page. There, we will continue to post updates, details, and resources to help you stay on top of this issue.  

Your support has enabled us to reach millions of Americans in the last few days through almost $10 million in earned media. Please consider a making contribution to help continue our efforts.

The fight is far from over and though the road ahead is long, it may yet be the pathway to victory. 

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.