COMPILED AND TYPED UP BY 'ORION' AUGUST 1994 PLEASE DISTRIBUTE FREELY AND AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE!!!! This text file contains several documents concerning the legalization of cannabis hemp/ marijuana. They are: I. - 10 things everybody should know about marijuana B. - Footnotes II. - 'Talk Back' Replies to common arguments against legalization of hemp. III. - Various uses to the very versatile hemp plant IIIB. - A breakdown of the possibilities and potential of the hemp plant IV. - Addresses and phone numbers to national organizations for legalization of hemp V. - 5 things you can do Right Now to help VB. - Form Letters and Phone Scripts to send to Congressmen etc. VI. - America's Prisoner of Conscience: the Legality of Prohibition VII. - What you can do to preserve justice as a Jury (Jury Nullification and other such powers, not just for hemp cases.) Thanks goes to BACH for supplying me with the papers I. 10 Things Every Parent, Teenager, and Teacher Should Know About Marijuana- Written and researched by Family Council on Drug Awareness P.O. Box 71093, LA, CA 90071-0093 (310) 288-4152 1) Q. What is Marijuana A. "Marijuana" refers to dried flowers of some strains of the cannabis hemp plant (1) which contain non-narcotic chemical THC in various quantities. When smoked or eaten, it produces the feeling of being, "high," which lasts a few hours. Different strains of this herb produce their own sensual effects, ranging from sedative to stimulant. 2) Q. Who Uses Marijuana? A. There is no simple profile of a typical marijuana user. It's been used for thousands of years for medical, social, and religious reasons as well as for relaxation (2). Several of our Presidents farmed hemp (3) and some are believed to have smoked it. One out f every five Americans in all walks of life say they have tried it, and it is still very popular. 3) Q. How Long Have People Been Using Marijuana? A. Since Biblical times. (4) This practice was widely accepted in America (5), as well, until the orchestrated campaign of the 1930's led to disinformation (6), public hysteria and the first American laws against using it (7). 4) Q. Is Marijuana Addictive? A. No, it is not. (8) Most users are moderate consumers who only smoke it socially or occasionally to relax. We now know that 10% of our population have "addictive personalities," and they are no more nor less likely to abuse cannabis than anything else. On a relative scale, marijuana is less habit-forming than either sugar or chocolate. Sociologists report a general pattern of marijuana usage that peaks in early adult years , followed by a period of levelling off, and finally a gradual reduction in use. (9) 5) Q. Has Anyone Ever Died From Smoking Marijuana? A. No; not even once (10) Judge Francis Young studied all the evidence in 1988, and ruled that "marijuana is far safer than many foods we commonly consume." The federal agency NIDA says that autopsies show 75 people per year are high on marijuana when they die, but this does not mean marijuana is a factor in any of their deaths. This chart shows the typical number of deaths from selected substances in a typical year: Tobacco 340,000-395,000 Alcohol (excluding crime/accidents 125,000+ Drug Overdose (prescription) 14,000-27,000 Drug Overdose (illegal) 3,800-5,200 Marijuana 0 * Source: U.S. Government Bureau of Mortality Statistics (1987) 6) Q. Does Marijuana Lead to Hard Drugs? A. No. (11) Although people who abuse drugs often smoke marijuana also, the National Academy of Science reports that "legal drugs for adults, such as alcohol and tobacco,. . .precede the use of all illicit drugs." Tobacco is known as "the gateway drug." 7) Q. Does It Cause Violence? A. No, just the opposite. (12) The only crime most marijuana users commit is using marijuana. The U.S. Shafer Commission (13) report was the most comprehensive study ever undertaken on the subject. It found that marijuana smokers "tend to be underrepresented" in violence and in crime, "especially when compared to users of alcohol, amphetamines, and barbiturates." The simple fact is that marijuana does not change your basic personality. The federal government reports that over 70 million Americans have smoked it... probably including some of the nicest people you know. 8) Q. How Does Marijuana Effect Your Health? A. A harvard University medical team in 1987 found that "dangerous physical reactions to marijuana are almost unknown." All smoke is unhealthy, but marijuana is safer than tobacco, and people tend to smoke less of it. That risk can be eliminated by eating the plant instead of smoking it 914) or it can be reduced by using water pipes to smoke smaller amounts of more potent marijuana. Moreover, cannabis is a proven medical herb with hundreds of modern therapeutic uses in treating ailments from stress to arthritis to glaucoma to asthma to cancer therapy, to AIDS, and more. (15) 9) Q. What About All Those Scary Stories and Reports? A. Most sensational claims of health risks cite no studies or sources at all. Others rely on a handful of inconclusive or flawed reports. (16) After 20 years study, the California Attorney General's panel (17) concluded in 1989 that "an objective consideration shows than marijuana is responsible for less damage to the individual and society than alcohol and cigarettes." 10) Q. What Should We Do? A. American taxpayers have funded many studies on this very point, and every independent government panel on marijuana has opposed the jailing of marijuana smokers. (18) Most have urged lawmakers to re-legalize and tax use of this herb by responsible adults, with age limits and regulations like those on alcohol and tobacco. Tell you elected leaders to free up our police and resources to combat violent crime and to honor our national pledge and commitment to "liberty and justice for all" by ending marijuana prohibition. Penalties against possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself." -President Jimmy Carter in a message to congress August 2, 1977. IB. Footnotes: 1) Researchers count about 50.000 non-smoking commercial uses for cannabis hemp: in paper, textiles, fuels, food, medicine, sealants, etc. But even the pharmacologically inert strains and uses of hemp are now outlawed. Sources: Encyclopedia Britannica, US Dept. of Agriculture; Herer Jack, 'The Emperor Wears No Clothes.' 2) In the Bible, God told man to use, "all the seed bearing herbs" and did not exclude the hemp/marijuana plant. (Genesis 1:12. 29-31 and 2:15) Coptic Christians, Rastafarians, Shintos, Hindus, Sufis, Buddhists, Essenes, Zoroastrians, Bantus and many other sects have traditions that consider the plant to have religious value. 3) America was founded by Hemp farmers. 1975 President of the American historical Reference and consultant for the Smithsonian Institute, Dr. Burke counts the following seven U.S. presidents as cannabis smokers: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, Andrew jackson, Zachary Taylor, and Franklin Pierce, as well as Benjamin Franklin. "Father of Our Country" George Washington once recorded his preference for female plants and mentioned a "curious" preparation (5-26-1794 letter), possibly hashish, made from the resins of hemp flowers. After Abraham Lincoln's assassination, his wife was prescribed hashish for her nerves. John F. Kennedy' was known to smoke marijuana for his back pain and to favor legalization. (Washington farm journals, Jefferson Diaries, national archives, et.c) 4) Archaeologists report that cannabis was probably the first plant cultivated by humans- about 8,000 B.C. (Columbia University, History of the World.) It was used for linen, paper, and garments. It was being smoked in China and India by 2700 B.C. (US> Dept. of Agriculture Yearbook 1913.) 5) Turkish smoking parlors, a tradition in the Middle and Far East, were popular in Europe and America as recently as the turn of the century. 6) Forty years earlier, the exhaustive British "Raj" Indian Hemp Commission (1896) study of "gunjah" smokers found no cause to restrict its use. 7) Yellow journalist William Randolph Hearst fabricated horror stories about marijuana. His lies were eventually exposed, but not until long after marijuana prohibition was enacted in 1938. (Sloman, Larry 'Reefer Madness.') The "marijuana" ban was written in secret and passed soon after the invention of machines designed to processes commercial hemp to compete against business owned by Hearst, DuPont, Mellon, and other powerful families. (Herer, Jack 'The Emperor Wore No Clothes') 8) Marijuana use does not lead to physical dependency: Mikuriya, Dr. Tod 'Marijuana: Medical Papers' 1973; Judge Francis Young, 1988 (Docket # 88-22); NY Laguardia Report, 1944; US Shafer Commission 1972; etc. 9) Sources: Kaplan, John 'Marijuana: The New Prohibition' 1970; Shafer Commission 1972; NIDA National Household Surveys 1970-1991 10) Source: Harvard Medical Report, 1987' Judge Francis Young, Sept. 1988 (Docket #18-22) 11) Costa Rican Study, 1980; Jamaican Study, 1975; Shafer Commission, 1972; The FBI reports that 65%-75% of criminal violence is alcohol related. 12) This fact has been discussed in every study done on cannabis, from the British Raj Commissions on. Nonetheless, the "Siler Commission" study conducted by the U.S. in Panama (1931) reported "no impairment" in personnel who smoked marijuana during off-duty hours. 13) Also known as President Richard M. Nixon's "Blue Ribbon Report." 14) "The only clinically significant medical problem that is scientifically linked to marijuana is Bronchitis. Like smoking tobacco, the treatment is the same: stop smoking" (Dr. Fred Oerther, M.D., 1991.) 15) Traditional uses source: Dr. Tod Mikuriya, 'Marijuana: Medical Papers.' Marijuana could replace at least 10-20% of prescription drugs now in use. Source: Dr. Raphel Mechoulam. Marijuana was a major active ingredient in 40-50% of patent medicines before its ban. 16) "There is not yet any conclusive evidence as to whether prolonged use of marijuana cause permanent changes in the nervous system or sustained impairment of brain function and behavior in human beings." (National Academy of Sciences.) In the infamous Health/Tulane study (1974), wild monkeys were brutally captured, then slowly suffocated in smoke over a period of 90 days. Source: National Institute of Health. 17) California Attorney General's Research Advisory Panel '20th Annual Report, 1989 (released 1990; portions suppressed.) 18) Major U.S. and international studies on marijuana and policy include "Report of the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission" (British 1896); "Siler Commission" Report (U.S. 1933); "LaGuardia" Commission" (U.S. 1972) "Ladaine Commission" (Canada, 1972); Alaska State Commission (1989); Attorney General's Research Advisory Panel (California, 1990) et al. II. TALK BACK! Discussing Marijuana Law: The most common arguments against ending cannabis prohibition are as easy to refute as they are to enumerate. 1) "Marijuana alters consciousness" Yes, and so does thinking; is that bad? Some people get high on this natural herb cannabis hemp. Others get "high on life," others "high on God," others by eating chocolate, drinking coffee and beer, smoking tobacco; even prayer and meditation alter consciousness. If watching TV is not an escape from reality, what is? But who gave the prohibitionists the power to dictate what we can or cannot do for fun? And what other pastimes do they plan to ban one day? The real issue here is freedom of thought. Neither the U.S. Constitution nor the Bible forbid cannabis use. In fact, the Bible specifies that God gave us "all" the seed bearing plants to use; and the Declaration of Independence guarantees our right to the "Pursuit of Happiness." Responsible people are now being persecuted for making certain choices. That is the real problem. 2) "But some people just can't cope with it." That's right: About 10% of Americans have addictive personalities and might have to avoid cannabis. Everyone has the right to say "no" to cannabis: But the 90% of people who can control our appetites also have the right to say "yes" if we so desire. Let's not ruin our lives with hysterical laws that do nothing to solve the real problems facing society. More importantly, some people can't do without cannabis because it is essential medicine for the critically ill and those in chronic pain. We're talking about AIDS, cancer, Multiple Scleroses, and blindness, as well as arthritic aches and pains, stress, and so on. 3) "What about marijuana smokers motivation?" Blaming marijuana is just a cop out. The Beatles wrote many of their finest tunes while openly smoking cannabis. President Clinton, Vice-president Al Gore, members of the Supreme Court, many members of Congress, and millions of successful professionals and working people have smoked cannabis. When a person loses motivation, they're re usually many factors to consider. they need our understanding and help. Arresting them and putting them in prison does not solve these problems: It makes matters worse. Most people prefer to smoke cannabis for relaxation or creative inspiration during leisure hours- not when they have work to do. And if cannabis smokers are so unmotivated, how come it takes urine tests, blood samples, and hair analysis to tell who smokes it? 4) "Ending marijuana prohibition 'sends the wrong message'- that we condone drugs." Prohibition does not send messages: It sends people to jail. No prison can rehabilitate a patriotic American who believes that marijuana prohibition is unconstitutional and immoral. Cannabis is not a synthetic drug: it's a natural herb. Some people enjoy smoking it, other's don't. It's a matter of taste; a difference of opinion; it's what democracy is all about. Expect cannabis use to level off soon after prohibition ends along with reduced use of hard drugs. The real message of prohibition is this: Despite all the safeguards in the Constitution, petty tyrants still spread lies and take away the freedom of others. Send the "right" message through honest education about personal freedom and responsibility. Ending prohibition is part one of that lesson. 5) "We already have so much trouble with alcohol, tobacco, and bad driving; why add a new problem?" If you think we have an alcohol problem today, just remember the "Roaring Twenties," when competing liquor outlets used to send carloads of gangsters out with machine guns to settle their differences. The criminal violence caused by Prohibition (the 18th Amendment) were so much worse than the effects of drinking that the American people soon voted in the 21st Amendment, and liquor was soon re-legalized. Society has since learned to cope with alcohol use, just as we have accepted cannabis use for thousands of years. people are quick to adapt, and most knowledgeable sources agree that cannabis smokers are generally peaceful, law-abiding people. In fact, they are often among the nicest people you meet. Drinking can lead to reckless driving. You should not drive when using common medicines like antihistamines, either. This is a matter of common sense and personal responsibility. No one should ever drive if they are not fully alert and capable of doing so. That's why we need impairment testing not urine testing. Cannabis is non-toxic, non-addictive, non-narcotic, and "safer than many foods we commonly consume," according to DEA judge Francis young in 1988. So, alcohol and tobacco carry health risks that cannabis does not have. Some 500,000 people a year die from using them, but not one single person ever died from smoking cannabis in all of history. In fact, cannabis has hundreds of proven medical uses. Society might set age limits on cannabis use, as we have for alcohol and tobacco, but it is a crime to set prison terms. 6) "What about the children?" Yes, think about the children. What kind of world are we making for them? One full of prisons, secret police and intrusive laws that encourage them to spy on their own parents. We say no, let's build them a world that respects the individual while educating people about the responsible use of freedom. This is exactly why we need to repeal prohibition. Not only will it win back the rights and liberties that generations of Americans fought and died for : Hemp will also provide our children with a healthy environment and a sustainable economy to live in. Hemp industries can save our family farms, rescue our garment industry, expand our paper and building industries and bring back job and tax revenues. That is what hemp can do for our children. (Note: Canada recently legalized the hemp plant for farming but not personal use, its THC levels are too low to get a high.) Throughout history, hemp has been a help to our human society. It now holds the key to our future. III. THE MANY USES OF HEMP The World's Most Valuable and Versatile Natural Resource Stems: Can be used for fabric, fuel, paper, and commercial use. Hemp is dried and broken down into two parts: Threadlike fibers and bits of "hurd" or pulp. Each of these products has its own distinct application: The fiber strands are spun into thread, which is either made into rope or woven into durable, high quality textiles and made into clothing, sails, fine linens, and fabrics of all types and textures. The fragments of dried stalk that remain are hurds-77% cellulose-that can be made into tree-free, dioxin-free paper; non-toxic paints and sealants; industrial fabrication materials; construction materials; plastics; and much, much more! Hemp is the best source of plant pulp for biomass fuel to make gas, charcoal, methanol, gasoline, or even produce electricity. Seeds: can be used for oil and food. Hemp seeds produce oil for cooking, lubrication, fuel, etc. The seed is cholesterol lowering source of full protein. Leaves and flowers are also edible. Foliage for medicine, food, and relaxation. Cannabis has important medical value for easing pain, relieving stress, and treating illnesses from glaucoma to cancer to nausea to AIDS and beyond. Hemp flowers and leaves are smoked or eaten for many therapeutic, religious, and relaxational purposes. Rooted in nature: Even the hemp roots play an important role: they anchor and aerate the soil to control erosion and mudslides. Hemp can save family farms, create jobs, reduce acid rain, and chemical pollution, and reverse the Greenhouse effect. IIIB. HEMP TIES IT ALL TOGETHER! International Business Bonanza A) "The investment Commodity of the Nineties" o Renewable natural resource for manufacture of paper, fiber and pulps and oils, paints, sealants, fuel, food, medicine, etc. o Hemp industries will save American jobs o Underdeveloped potential for multi-billion dollar profits o Income generated could save the bank/savings and loan industry o Hemp seed is among the most nutritious of food sources o Replaces trees as source of housing and construction material o Biomass fuel will permanently cut dependance on fossil fuels o Hemp for plastic or a biodegradable replacement material o Hemp is history's standard fiber for fabrics, cordage, etc. o Generates a self-sustaining, de-centralized, economy o Offers a wealth of untapped sources for tax revenue B) A Healthy Environment "Earth's Premier Renewable Resource" o Saving Millions of trees for paper and construction o Reducing acid rain by using biomass energy o Less chemical pollution in rivers and drinking waters o Generating oxygen to reverse the Greenhouse Effect o Rebuilding soil and preventing erosion o Using less pesticides and fertilizers for cultivation o Replacing whale oil with Hemp seed oil o Providing food for people and animals o Leaving fully biodegradable waste products C) Sustainable Agriculture "Hemp: The Cash Crop of the Future" o Versatile enough crop to rescue family farms o Best source of biomass for all energy forms o Related economic gains in spin-off industries o A viable, profitable crop that uses less pesticides and fertilizers for high yield o Commercial hemp has almost no THC o Even though illegal, cannabis (marijuana) is already America's biggest cash crop D) Common Sense Crime Reduction "With Liberty and Justice for All" o Prohibition breeds crime and violence (i.e. Roaring Twenties and Al Capone) o Smoking cannabis reduces tension and prevents violence o Prohibition itself is unconstitutional and illegal o Marijuana reform will unclog the courts by reducing case loads o Re-legalization of cannabis hemp frees up police resources for serious crime and will increase respect for all law o It will remove hard drugs and the criminal element from the social cannabis market to protect casual users. E) Effective Medicine "Nature's Flower of Health" o Indicated for: Asthma, Emphysema, Glaucoma, Tumors, Nausea (Cancer and AIDS therapy), Rheumatism, Arthritis, Stress, Sleep and relaxation, Multiple Sclerosis and Spasms, Epilepsy, Migraine Headaches, in Antibiotics, Antibacterial CBDs, Corn Plasters and Poultices, as Expectorant, Appetite Stimulant, Saliva Reducer, and has hundreds of therapeutic uses. o Non-toxic, convenient, self-administrable medication o Not addictive o Remarkable few side effects o Affordable health care and maintenance F) Civil Liberties and Free Choice "Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness o These have been Inalienable American Rights since 1776 o Restore freedom of choice and the right to privacy o Cannabis prohibition has history of racist enforcement o Freedom of religion is being violated (Hindus, Coptics, etc.) o Forfeiture laws deny citizens due processes of law and violate our basic right to private property o "War on Drugs" attacks many constitutional rights o Police spying and surveillance are rampant; corrupt secret police buy and sell drugs to encourage people to break the law o A war of oppression is being waged on growers and users o Marijuana offenders are political Prisoners of Conscience G) A Proud Part of Our History "An Industry as Old as Pottery" o Presidents Washington, jefferson, etc. were hemp farmers when they formed the US and signed the Bill of Rights o 10,000 year history of human cultivation o The sails of Christopher Columbus' ships were hemp o Cannabis smoking is a centuries old tradition o Declaration of Independence and US Constitution were both originally drafted on Hemp paper o Hemp outlawed in the conspiracy of 1937 o 50 years of Hemp prohibition are finally coming to an end H) Promising A Brighter Future "A Freer, Safer, More Prosperous America" o As the day ends, you put away your report written on hemp paper, drive home in your hemp fueled car down hemp-lined highways, to your house built, plumbed, and painted with hemp. You change into your hemp clothes and fix a nice dinner of seasoned hemp tofu, turn on some music and light a pipeful of whatever you want. o Business opportunity , more competitive product and prices o Private property and free enterprise, not police bureaucrats and spies o Personal freedom includes the right to know and to grow o Personal responsibilities, the right for adults to decide IV. For More Information, Write To (SASE) or Call: Business Alliance for Commerce in Hemp (BACH) P.O. Box 71093 LA CA 90071-0093 310-288-4152 Help End Marijuana Prohibition (HEMP) 5632 Van Nuys Blvd. #210 Van Nuys, CA 91401 818-377-5886 National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws Temple Hts. Stn. Box 53356 Washington DC 20009 202-483-5550 American Hemp Council P.O. Box 71093 LA,CA 90071-0093 310-288-4152 Drug Policy Foundation 4455 Conneticutt Ave. NW #b-500 Washington DC 2008-2302 202-895-1634 California NORML 2215-R St. #278 San Francisco, CA 94114 415-563-5858 Freedom Fighters c/o HT, 235 Park Av. S, #500 New York, NY 10003 V. *5 Things You Can Do Right Now to Help Legalize Hemp/Marijuana* 1. Talk about Hemp/marijuana Today to friends, family, co-workers and everybody. Just say you think hemp/ marijuana (not "drugs"!) should be made legal again. You'll be amazed at how many agree. Talk about medical marijuana, free choice, and non-smoking commercial hemp (rope, paper, fabric fuel, oil, food, etc.) Be proud of what you believe. This is America. Remember, you're in good company: Both Washington & jefferson were hemp farmers. people needing legal help should call NORML. 2. Photocopy literature to pass out and send with your letters. Always keep it handy. You never know who or when somebody will want it. Give it out at meetings, events, campuses, etc. 3. Write letters to your elected officials, newspapers, magazines, TV & radio stations. Be brief. Be clear. Don't mix issues. Better yet, write at least one letter every moth, and every time there is an editorial or commentary on marijuana or "drugs." Respond to articles and events or just state your opinion. They'll read it, even if they don't publish it. 4. Help out a local group. Come to meetings. Make phone calls, do office work, fold and mail literature, etc. Share your special skills (like computer, data entry, research, speaking, organizing, art, and other talents.) If there is no group, start one. It's easier than you think. The groups listed above are glad to help. 5. Donate money to active groups like NORML, BACH, HEMP, the American Hemp Council, Freedom Fighters and others. Contribute supplies and postage. All groups needs access to free or cheap printing services. Donate books and magazine subscriptions to school and libraries, maybe even buy an ad or billboard space to get out the message. It's better to spend a little money now to re-legalize hemp/ marijuana than a lot of money later to stay out of jail. VB. WHATEVER YOU DO, START DOING IT RIGHT AWAY! Studies show that if you don't get started within a day or two, you might not ever get around to it, and we have to act today to build the momentum we need to re-legalize cannabis hemp/ marijuana tomorrow! Scripts: President Clinton 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington DC, 20500 Senator ________ Senate Office Building Washington DC 20510 Representative ______ U.S. House of Representatives Washington DC 20515 Dear _____: It is time for a real change. Please take every action you can to re-legalize personal use of cannabis hemp, or marijuana, and to see that all who need it for medicine receive it at once. It is an injustice to allow alcohol use but punish those who "inhale" cannabis. Barriers to the commercial use of hemp for paper, fabrics, fuel, and so on hurt our economy and environment, and must be ended immediately. It just doesn't make any sense to punish American farmers and business that don't have anything to do with drugs as all just because of inane mistakes made in the 1930's. Let's move into the next century. Sincerely, Phone Script: Hello, my name is _____ and I'm calling to register my opinion with (Senator, Representative, etc.) ____. I think it's time to re-legalize the personal use of cannabis hemp, or marijuana, and see to it that everyone who needs it as medicine receives it immediately. Laws that block commercial use of hemp for paper, fabrics, fuel and so on hurt our economy and the environment. They should be completely eliminated. It is injustice to punish American farmers and people whose businesses don't have anything to do with drugs. I want to know what (Sen. Rep. _____) is doing about this problem. (Give them your address and ask for a WRITTEN reply.) VI. America's Prisoner of Conscience 1) How soon will our Cannabis Offenders Receive Amnesty as Prisoners of Conscience? Anyone who is arrested imprisoned, fined or otherwise punished for a peaceful act that is political in nature rather than criminal is a political prisoner of conscience. While criminal acts-theft, rape, murder, corruption, fraud, etc.-are all universally condemned, cannabis use has been legal and accepted in virtually every nation and society on earth since around 8,000 B.C.; even in America for 150 years! The Declaration of Independence grants that "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" are "inalienable rights." And yet, since 1937, "marijuana" users have been persecuted for acting upon their moral, cultural and constitutional human rights. Governments use domestic spies, systematic surveillance, entrapment, property seizures, secret police and other illegal, anti-democratic activities to enforce prohibition. A technologically sophisticated global war. of oppression is today being waged against growers and users of hemp. Therefore, for anyone to smoke, grow, or exchange cannabis is a peaceful act of civil protest. 2) What is the 'Prisoners of Conscience' Campaign? We are American citizens, families, and prisoners who still believe in justice. This campaign is a petition for redress of grievances, conducted on behalf of cannabis users and prisoners of conscience, as specified in the U.S. Constitution and the U.N. Charter. Our letter writing campaign targets news, media, national and international agencies, to help win liberty and justice for all who use hemp, restitution from governments and an end to the political persecution. Suggestions for what you can do to help are listed at the end of this document. 3) Is it Criminal... or Political? Hemp is a plant; a valuable, sustainable natural resource with thousands of commercial uses that are not drug-related. political groups, doctors, elected officials, judges, and even government commissions have opposed "marijuana" prohibition since it began. There has been a historic contradiction in U.S. hemp laws: Americans were required to farm and sell hemp in the late colonial and early Republic eras, but are prohibited from cultivation and use today. Prohibition restrains free and legitimate commercial trade, blocks interstate transport and sale of hemp products, and violates both federal anti-trust laws and long-established states' rights. Laws against hemp conflict with legally defined, international human rights standards by denying people access to hemp for food, medicine, fuel, property, work, and religion. The vast majority of medical cannabis users are deprived of medication and punished for seeking treatment of their choice. There are no compelling arguments that can justify cannabis prohibition-especially since tobacco and alcohol use are accepted. 4) The American Constitution "The supreme law of the land" (Art. VI:2), does not empower government to establish or enforce prohibition. Another amendment would be required-and there is none. So all anti- "marijuana" laws are illegal. Even the 18th Amendment prohibition on alcohol, passed in 1919, accepted personal use and possession as legal rights. Only commercial activity in liquor was banned. "After the gang ridden "Roaring 20's" era, the 21st Amendment, repealing Prohibition was enthusiastically approved by Americans in 1933, reaffirming what Thomas Jefferson called freedom of "mind." This is our history and the legal precedent to prohibition law. Now the Bill of Rights is being systematically violated in the guise of a drug war. The President, Congress, and Courts are sworn to uphold these Constitutional protections. a) 1st Amendment: Provides freedom of religion. All Christians and Jews are instructed by God to grow and use "all the seed bearing plants" (Genesis 1:29-31). The Rastafarians, Coptics, etc. honor cannabis as a sacrament. Also, the rights of the people to gather for any reason is broadly protected, as long as such assembly is peaceful. b) 4th Amendment: Forbids unreasonable searches and seizures of "persons, houses, papers and effects." establishing a right to privacy. Many signers of the Constitution were commercially farming cannabis at the very moment they penned and voted to approve these very words. c) 5th Amendment: Random searches and enforced "drug testing" of body fluids violate the promise of presumed innocence, as well as its provisions against self-incrimination. d) 6th Amendment: Promises "impartial" jury hearings into the "nature and cause" of all criminal charges, and the right of the accused to confront all witnesses against him. e) 7th amendment: Seizure and forfeiture of suspects' property without due process and a jury trial are forbidden whenever "the value in controversy shall exceed $20." f) 8th Amendment: Seizure of property violates its ban on excessive bails and fines. Criminal penalties are arbitrary, cruel, and unusual punishment unsuited to the offense. g) 9th Amendment: Confirms that the listing of specific rights in the Bill of Rights "shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people." h) 10th Amendment: Returns all powers that are not delegated by the Constitution back to the states "or to the people." What can you do to help? 1. Copy and distribute this leaflet, especially to lawyers, judges, and jurors and those who are facing trial for cannabis offense. 2. Send us a notarized affidavit recording your personal knowledge or experience of any violations of Constitutional and human rights, to help us end hemp prohibition. 3. Learn about and support anti-prohibition groups,. legislation, ballot measures and candidates who believe in liberty and justice. 4. Tell state and federal officials to sponsor prohibition repeal and restitution laws. 5. Call on United nations Committee on Human Rights (UN Plaza NY, NY 10017) to investigate America's "War on Drugs" for political repression and international terrorism. 6. Demand that the UN and World Court (c/o the UN) overturn the Single Convention Treaty of 1961, which created international cannabis prohibition, and enforce the 1981 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 7. Ask Amnesty International, (322 Eighth Ave. NY, NY 10001. 212/ 807-8400) to stand up for America's political prisoners and to recognize that the "marijuana" laws conflict with international human rights standards. 8. Contact the media to demand that they report on this Constitutional crisis. 9. Raise these political issues if you are ever charged with a "marijuana" offense. 10. Sit on juries and exercise your veto power (nullification) to acquit cannabis offenders. 11. File lawsuits against prohibition laws, enforcement policies, and the people and organizations who promote intolerance. 12. Organize within the community to raise the understanding of the real nature of prohibition and to promote political reform. "Prohibition...goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man's appetite by legislation, and makes a crime out of things that are not a crime... "A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded." -Abraham Lincoln, December 1840 VII. Jury Power! (Your power) 1. Jury Nullification 2. Fully Informed Juries 3. Juror Rights You Do NOT Have to Convict Your Fellow Citizens Over a Bad Law! As a member of any American jury, you are entitled to vote "not guilty" when you believe that a law (eg marijuana prohibition) or its application is unjust to the defendant. Known as "Jury Nullification," the acquittal does not change or rewrite the law: It applies justice in the particular case being heard. When the judge says you must follow only the written law, you can honestly answer "Yes" because it is your legal right in America to nullify any law. Why did our Founding Fathers give jurors the power to decide both the facts and the law? So that government employees (e.g., legislators, policeman, prosecutors, and judges) can't arbitrarily imprison people for things that displease them. Juries exist to keep good men free and to watch out for people's rights. These rights are far more important than political expediency or the convenience of judges, police, prosecuting attorneys, or legislators. When the government passes a bad law, the jury can nullify it when a person brought to trial for disobeying that law. Until 1964, the law (the right to nullify) was a right known to all American jurors. In fact, judges and attorneys had to inform juries about it: This was the law of the land. However, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled (in a 1964 draft card burning case in protest over the Vietnam War) that jurors were no longer to be informed of this right by any officer of the court- which included both the prosecuting and defense attorneys, even though it is still the juror's right. In fact, from 1929 to 1933- the last four years of alcohol prohibition- half of all such trials ended in acquittals and hung juries due to jurors exercising this right against the alcohol prohibition law, even when suspects were caught red-handed. In Kentucky right not, many marijuana cultivation cases brought to trial end with no convictions because of this jury or individual jurors nullification law right. Montana was the first state to have an initiative working toward the ballot to require all judges to once again inform all jurors of their right to judge the law as well as the facts and bring in a verdict according to the conscience. Groups have since formed in 22 states to legislate similar laws. To this duet, you have the constitutional right, because of the following. In the forfeiture case of Georgia vs. Brailsford in 1794, Chief Justice John Jay (credited with writing some of the federalist papers) instructed the jury: "On the question of fact it is the province of the jury, and on the question of law it is the province of the court, to decide... But it must be observed that, by law which recognizes this reasonable distribution of jurisdiction, you have, nevertheless, a right to take it upon yourselve to judge both, and to determine the law as well as the fact in controversy...Both objects are lawfully within your power of decision" DON'T AVOID JURY DUTY Register to vote, sign up and serve a jury. Only You can preserve justice. ----------------------------------------------------------------- *PLEASE DiSTRiBUTE* Thank you for taking the time to read this.