Dear MoveOn member,
For years, MoveOn members have campaigned for marijuana decriminalization,
and now real change is in sight.
The Justice Department has just recommended easing restrictions on
marijuana and reclassifying it from the most severe "Schedule I" group to
"Schedule III."^1 The "Schedule III" group is a lower-risk category and
includes testosterone and Tylenol with codeine.^2 While marijuana will
remain a controlled substance and has not been decriminalized at the
federal level, this is a major change in how the government views it and
how the government treats the people who use it.
And it is a huge step toward breaking down the racial and wealth
inequalities that have led to disproportionate numbers of Black and brown
people and poor communities ending up behind bars for nonviolent marijuana
offenses.
When track and field sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson was disqualified in
2021 due to an outdated and arbitrarily enforced rule around marijuana and
stopped from competing in the Olympics, nearly 600,000 people signed a
petition on MoveOn's petition platform calling for her to be reinstated.^3
This powerful petition received a great deal of media attention, including
by ESPN, "The Today Show," NBC's "Nightly News," NPR, Black Enterprise,
and many more. MoveOn members even organized together to deliver the
signatures in person to the United States Anti-Doping Agency, which had
handed down the harsh punishment.
In total, millions of MoveOn members have signed petitions calling for
marijuana decriminalization, legalization, and changes to the Justice
Department.
MoveOn's petitions platform is an incredible community of people coming
together to make real change happen. It provides individuals and
organizations with free tools to start petitions, organize supporters,
engage decision-makers, and win their own grassroots campaigns.
But running MoveOn's petition platform requires money: for web servers and
social media ads to drive more petition signatures, and to pay for our
small but mighty petition platform team.
[ [link removed] ]Can you chip in $9 right now to fuel MoveOn's petition
platform and help millions mobilize and take action?
As we celebrate this important victory, we have to still keep up the
pressure. The proposed changes have to be reviewed by the White House
Office of Management and Budget, go through a public-comment period and a
review by an administrative judge—a possibly lengthy and challenging
process.^4
The good news is that MoveOn's petition platform allows people and
organizations to not just start a petition but to organize their
petition's signers without lengthy and challenging processes—and to fight
for real change, supported by MoveOn, no matter how hard it is or how long
it takes.
While we work to ensure that marijuana is actually reclassified, we demand
even more. A currently active MoveOn petition is calling on President
Biden and Congress to end the federal prohibition on cannabis while
prioritizing safety, research, workers' rights, and restorative justice.^5
Seven in 10 Americans think that marijuana use should be legal, and so do
majorities of all major political and ideological subgroups.^6 President
Biden said he would reclassify marijuana when he ran for office in 2019,
and we've been working to make sure he keeps his promise.^7
The need to legalize cannabis nationwide couldn't be more urgent. More
than 1.5 million drug arrests are made each year, and about 550,000 of
those are for cannabis offenses alone.^8 Almost 500,000 people are
incarcerated for nothing more than a drug law violation, and Black and
brown people are disproportionately impacted by drug enforcement and
sentencing practices.^9
In late 2022, thanks in part to the pressure of MoveOn members, President
Biden issued a presidential proclamation to pardon many federal and
Washington, D.C., simple marijuana possession offenses, and in late 2023,
he issued another proclamation to expand the relief provided by the
original one.^10
MoveOn's petition platform is a way for you to fight for what you believe
in and support others in their efforts. When you sign a petition, you're
not just adding your voice to the chorus of your fellow MoveOn members who
are calling for change; together, you're making a real impact. Petitions
on MoveOn's petition platform have collected more than 145 million total
signatures over the years, which led to many successful outcomes.
[ [link removed] ]Can you chip in $9 to support MoveOn's petition platform
and the millions of petition creators and signers who use it to fight for
progress?
Way back in 2012, a MoveOn member started up a petition for student loan
forgiveness. More than half a million people signed it, and President
Obama responded—and not with a form letter but with an actual change in
policy that lowered student loan payments for more than 1.6 million
people.^11
And that MoveOn member didn't stop there. He organized his petition
signers for years and even started an organization to work with
progressive champions in Congress to provide student loan forgiveness for
all students in need. In the years since, billions of dollars more in
student loan assistance and forgiveness has been granted, including more
than $153 billion in relief for 4.3 million borrowers during the Biden
presidency.^12
Successes like these are inspiring, but they are also a reminder that
change doesn't happen overnight. Keeping our petition platform funded will
help keep the momentum going on issues like marijuana decriminalization
and student loan forgiveness.
[ [link removed] ]Can you chip in $9 now to help us continue supporting
marijuana decriminalization, student loan forgiveness, and more?
Thanks for all you do.
–Isbah, Soraya, Melissa, Evelyn, and the rest of the team
Sources:
1. "What marijuana reclassification means for the United States," AP News,
May 1, 2024
[link removed]
2. "Justice Dept. Recommends Easing Restrictions on Marijuana," The New
York Times, April 30, 2024
[link removed]
3. "Let Sha'Carri Run!" MoveOn Petitions, accessed May 8, 2024
[link removed]
4. "What marijuana reclassification means for the United States," AP News,
May 1, 2024
[link removed]
5. "Legalize Marijuana Nationwide," MoveOn Petitions, accessed May 8, 2024
[link removed]
6. "Grassroots Support for Legalizing Marijuana Hits Record 70%," Gallup,
November 8, 2023
[link removed]
7. "The Biden administration is moving to reclassify marijuana. Here's
what that means," NPR, April 30, 2024
[link removed]
8. "Fifty Years Ago Today, President Nixon Declared the War on Drugs,"
Vera, June 17, 2021
[link removed]
9. Ibid.
10. "Presidential Proclamation on Marijuana Possession, Attempted
Possession, and Use," U.S. Department of Justice, May 6, 2024
[link removed]
11. "VICTORY: Fighting Student Loan Debt," MoveOn, October 26, 2011
[link removed]
12. "Biden to forgive $7.4 billion more in student loan debt for 277,000
borrowers," CNN, April 12, 2024
[link removed]
Want to support MoveOn's work? The MAGA movement's book bans have forced
teachers and librarians across the country to remove books from their
shelves and censor what young people can learn. MoveOn is fighting back,
including by filling a "Banned Bookmobile" with books that the far right
has banned and driving it to key cities and towns to raise the visibility
of book bans, hand out banned books for free, and bring people together to
stop censorship. To keep up the fight against book bans and the MAGA
politicians who support them, we need your help.
Will you make a gift to power MoveOn's critical work?
[ [link removed] ]Yes, I'll chip in.
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