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Press Conference Regarding Patient's Rights to Medical Cannabis |
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CHICAGO, IL - In response to the DEA's recent and forthcoming efforts to shut down California medical marijuana dispensaries, combined with the federal government's unwillingness to sanction individual State's rights to legalize medical marijuana, Americans for Safe Access (www.safeaccessnow.org) is planning a press conference at noon on June 6th to challenge the misinformation put out by the U.S. Drug Czar, John Walters about the so-called threat of marijuana.
On Thursday June 6th, a nation-wide activist network organized by Americans for Safe Access (ASA) will escalate their campaign through non-violent direct action protests at DEA outposts in over 50 cities throughout the country.
Despite the fact that marijuana has never been legitimately linked to any form of terrorism, there is pressure from the Bush Administration to connect the "war on terror" to the "war on drugs" under the rubric of "narcoterrorism". As a result, the DEA is now aggressively targeting already existing State laws that permit medical marijuana, thereby criminalizing patients and their providers.
"When the DEA shuts down legitimate medical marijuana dispensaries, they push patients to the very street dealers that they warn are funding terrorism", says Bryan Brickner, Chair of Illinois NORML. "Today we're standing with the patients to educate the public on the medical benefits of marijuana, and to challenge the validity of the recent statements made by John Walters regarding the medicinal properties of marijuana."
Drug Czar Walters asserts that medical marijuana research is "based on pseudo-science", and referring to the 73% of Americans that want marijuana legalized for medical purposes, claimed "By now most Americans realize that the push to 'normalize' marijuana for medical use is part of the drug legalization agenda."
NORML contends that depriving patients of their medicine is an egregious offense. And although pharmaceutical companies have engineered Marinol(tm), a synthetic derivative of the THC molecule, the active ingredient in cannabis, this particular prescription only treats half of those illnesses for which medical marijuana has traditionally been prescribed, and costs roughly $800 for 100 pills. But it should be noted that what is most important about the creation of Marinol(tm) in the first place is that it confirms the medicinal value of Cannabis/THC, something our government continues to deny.
On hand will be patients, doctors, researchers, as well as policy makers and legislators discussing the legal issues involved with State's rights in legitimizing the legality of medical marijuana dispensaries. Visit www.safeaccessnow.org for information regarding actions in other cities.
The Illinois chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws
www.Illinoisnorml.org |
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 14 February 2007 )
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