John,

As we close 2025, it's apparent that NORML and the cannabis reform movement are at an inflection point. Political and societal changes don’t take place on their own. They only happen when advocates show up en masse to agitate for them. Absent sustained advocacy, we not only cease moving forward, we risk sliding backward.

Looking to 2026, it's clear that our fight for cannabis freedom is far from over. NORML's political and cultural opponents have not gone away. In many cases, they have regrouped and re-strategized. Many of these groups now have access to greater funding than ever before. With their increased funding comes increased ambitions and increasing influence, both politically and in the mainstream media.

Knowing that their side has lost the war of ideas, they've pivoted to targeting democracy itself – at times attacking and undermining the ballot initiative process, in other instances, overturning marijuana-related election results they disapprove of. In jurisdictions where cannabis is legal, they are rolling back consumers' hard-won freedoms by recriminalizing certain cannabis products (such as those obtained from out-of-state dispensaries or those containing elevated THC content), banning patients' access to flower, imposing artificially high excise and sales taxes, enacting new criminal penalties for those who fail to keep cannabis in its original packaging, and demanding cities and towns impose bans on marijuana-related businesses. And in the mainstream media, they are knowingly trying to confuse and mislead the public by ushering in a new era of Reefer Madness 2.0.

Finally, it goes without saying that our movement's objectives are not met until federal cannabis prohibition is repealed. Reclassifying cannabis to Schedule III is not a sufficient long-term solution and perpetuates the growing divide between state and federal marijuana policies. For states to truly legalize cannabis without the threat of undue federal interference, the government must abandon its long-standing 'Flat Earth' policies once and for all.

In short, the need for NORML's grassroots consumer-driven advocacy is more important than ever. We cannot rest on the laurels of our past successes or presume that someone else is going to finish the job. Our biggest challenges lie ahead and we need your support now more than ever. For over five decades, NORML has been there for you, represented our culture and demanded that it be recognized and respected. Now we need you to be there for us. Please make a tax-deductible year-end donation of $42 or more to The NORML Foundation today so that we can continue to lead this fight and liberate the cannabis plant and cannabis consumers from the shackles of prohibition.

Thank you for your continued advocacy and support,