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When track and field sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson was disqualified in 2021 due to an outdated and arbitrarily enforced rule around marijuana and stopped from competing in the Olympics, nearly 600,000 people signed a petition on MoveOn's petition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.
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.
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.
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
https://act.moveon.org/go/193143?t=5&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
2. "Justice Dept. Recommends Easing Restrictions on Marijuana," The New York Times, April 30, 2024
https://act.moveon.org/go/193144?t=7&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
3. "Let Sha'Carri Run!" MoveOn Petitions, accessed May 8, 2024
https://act.moveon.org/go/154453?t=9&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
4. "What marijuana reclassification means for the United States," AP News, May 1, 2024
https://act.moveon.org/go/193143?t=11&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
5. "Legalize Marijuana Nationwide," MoveOn Petitions, accessed May 8, 2024
https://act.moveon.org/go/191305?t=13&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
6. "Grassroots Support for Legalizing Marijuana Hits Record 70%," Gallup, November 8, 2023
https://act.moveon.org/go/193145?t=15&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
7. "The Biden administration is moving to reclassify marijuana. Here's what that means," NPR, April 30, 2024
https://act.moveon.org/go/193146?t=17&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
8. "Fifty Years Ago Today, President Nixon Declared the War on Drugs," Vera, June 17, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/191306?t=19&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
9. Ibid.
10. "Presidential Proclamation on Marijuana Possession, Attempted Possession, and Use," U.S. Department of Justice, May 6, 2024
https://act.moveon.org/go/193147?t=21&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
11. "VICTORY: Fighting Student Loan Debt," MoveOn, October 26, 2011
https://act.moveon.org/go/193148?t=23&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
12. "Biden to forgive $7.4 billion more in student loan debt for 277,000 borrowers," CNN, April 12, 2024
https://act.moveon.org/go/193149?t=25&akid=388399%2E40999114%2EuEjAbx
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