#SmokeSessions

Do not let Senator Sessions undo the work we've done!

Now for some good news: On Election Day nearly all of the cannabis-related ballot initiatives passed! (Sorry Arizona, you got outspent!) The number of Americans living in states with legal cannabis grew from roughly 17 million to over 67 million & counting. Before the election President Obama said “that is not gonna be tenable” for such a large number of Americans to live under one set of cannabis laws and others live under a different set laws. The time is ripe for Congress to pass legislation that will end the government’s harassment and arrests of peaceful cannabis users and their families!

Now for the bad news: Donald Trump has tapped one of the biggest prohibitionists in Congress to be the Attorney General of the United States: Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions. Earlier this year the Alabama Senator said “good people don’t smoke marijuana,” and while we don’t know yet if he’ll respect states rights (or DC’s rights since we are not a state) or if he’ll do what John Ashcroft did as George W. Bush’s Attorney General: raid lawful cannabis grows, raid lawful dispensaries, and even go so far as crack down on paraphernalia vendors. Let’s not forget why Tommy Chong went to jail and why history may repeat itself if we don’t act NOW!

We can’t idly sit by and watch all the hard work we’ve done to legalize cannabis in DC be eroded by an out of touch prohibitionist!

We are calling for a series of demonstrations against Jeff Sessions between NOW and January 20, 2017.

JOIN US FOR THE #SMOKESESSIONS

Our first #SmokeSessions will be at his Congressional Office ( 326 Russell Senate Office Building ) Monday, November 28, at HIGH NOON!

ROLL CALL: Pot Advocates Protest Jeff Sessions’ AG Nomination
US NEWS & WORLD REPORT: Pot Activists Get Jeff Sessions Staff Meeting After Insinuating They Would Stage Office Smoke-in

— VIDEO:


Join us Thursday, December 8 for #ShowSessions

Our second #SmokeSessions was called #ShowSessions and took place at High Noon on Thursday, December 8.

US NEWS & WORLD REPORT: Activists Roll Joint, Offer Free Pot at Jeff Sessions Office as Threats Swirl to Legalization Framework
WASHINGTON TIMES: Legal weed advocates sneak marijuana into Jeff Sessions’ Senate office

#ShowSessions on Capitol Hill, Dec 08 2016 from Mike Flugennock



Our third #SmokeSessions will be at 8AM, Tuesday, January 3, 2017 outside Union Station. We’ll greet Senate staffers, interns, and members of Congress on their way to their first day in the 115th Congress. At 9:30am we’ll visit Senate offices and drop off suggested questions for Sessions’ confirmation hearing. Click here to RSVP on Facebook!

Our fourth #SmokeSessions will be at the Senate Judiciary Confirmation Hearing for Senator Sessions on Tuesday, January 10 and Wednesday, January 11. DCMJ is seeking volunteers to line sit outside the hearing room. Please fill out this Google Doc if you can help! You can also RSVP on Facebook for SmokeSessions #4 (aka HearSessions), but please note, an RSVP on Facebook does not get you inside the hearing room. The number of seats we get inside the hearing room is contingent on the number of line sitters who volunteer!

Our fifth #SmokeSessions will be at the Inauguration on January 20, 2017.


• We demand the President-Elect Trump make a clear and unequivocal statement that he supports the full-legalization of cannabis in every State. And to urge the 115th Congress to pass legislation that removes cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act within the first 100 days.

• Second, we demand Senator Sessions evolve on his position that cannabis users are not only good people, but they deserve the same treatment under the law as alcohol users, prescription drug users, and non-users.

• Third, we demand Senator Sessions allow the various States and the District of Columbia the authority to make their own laws concerning cannabis without Federal government intervention.

• Fourth, we demand Senator Sessions investigate the racial disparities of federal minimum sentencing guidelines and the associated costs to the American taxpayers for maintaining the largest prison system in the world.

Our demands call for a respect for personal liberty, States rights, and good governance.

Please help us out and spread the word by using the hashtag #SmokeSessions and inviting your friends to the upcoming demonstrations!

DCMJ Holiday Party

Come to the DCMJ Holiday Party!

Photo Credit

DCMJ Holiday Party / 2017 Planning Meeting

Join us from 7pm to 9pm, Thursday, December 8 at the Adams Morgan Mellow Mushroom (2436 18th St NW) for the DCMJ Holiday Party! We’ll provide free pizza to everyone who attends! We’ll also discuss the ongoing plans for #SmokeSessions actions as well as formulate DCMJ’s plans for 2017. We hope you will join us! Click here to RSVP!

INVITE: The B.U.D. Summit — Saturday, August 20, 2016

The BUD Summit is taking place on Saturday, August 20

The Business, Understanding, & Development Summit (BUD Summit) is an effort to facilitate innovation and education for the cannabis industry on the East coast.

On August 20 in Washington, DC, we will capture the explosion of cannabis business, policy, culture, and investments made since the passing of legislation throughout the country.

The BUD Summit the evolution of the work accomplished with The Capitol CannaShow—the Mid­‐Atlantic’s largest and Washington, D.C.’s first cannabis conference and exposition. In the midst of an election year and with several state initiatives on ballots, there is no better place to capture the energy fueling the movement than mere blocks from our nation’s Capitol. New cannabis legislation is inevitable and we want to help you prepare to operate in this new environment.
The BUD Summit is taking place on Saturday, August 20

THE BUD SUMMIT WILL FEATURE:

Dynamic lectures on starting and growing a canna-business: (www.budsdc.com/agenda/)

  • An update from Adam Eidinger on the state of D.C. cannabis policy

  • A seminar with the industry’s most successful canna-business start-ups

  • Key-note speeches from Rick Simpson, Keith Stroup, and other industry leaders

  • A cultivation education center sponsored by DC Hydroponics

  • A 6,000 square foot exhibition area featuring top Canna-businesses nationwide

  • Advocacy opportunities with NORML, MPP, SSDP, Weed For Warriors, and more!

  • The Hot Box” is a unique opportunity for budding entrepreneurs to access accredited investors and accelerators

Take a monumental leap towards laying the foundation for the next generation of cannabis entrepreneurial success.

Visit www.BUDSDC.com more information and register now.


Don’t forget to RSVP & invite your friends on Facebook!

INVITE: The Funky Jaywalk — This Saturday at the Funk Parade

This weekend is going to be FUNKY

!! CALLING ALL FUNKY CANNABIS ADVOCATES !!

DC HighlifeYou are invited to get your funk on this weekend with the cannabis contignent of the Funk Parade led by DCMJ and DC Highlife!

ARE YOU READY TO FUNKY JAYWALK!?!

DETAILS: We are gathering at 3pm on Saturday, May 7 outside the Howard Theatre (620 T Street NW). Look out for the mobile jail cell as our gathering point. At approximately 4pm we will jaywalk a newly-rolled 51 foot joint with a bumpin’ sound system down U Street in the Funk Parade!

JOIN US & FUNK PROHIBITION!

Spread the word & invite your friends, because it’s gonna be FUNKY! We will be updating the Facebook Event Page with the latest info, so be sure to RSVP!

White House Seed Share & Cannabis Summit – 4/16

See you on Pennsylvania Ave. on April 16
We’re going back to the White House on Saturday, April 16 to hold the:

White House Seed Share & Cannabis Summit

WHO – Seed Seekers, Seed Sharers, Master Growers, Closet Gardeners, and Cannabis Advocates
WHAT – The legal sharing of cannabis seeds, buds, and cuttings and a discussion about the immediate descheduling of cannabis
WHERE – On Pennsylvania Ave., north of the White House, exactly where #Reschedule420 took place
WHEN – Saturday, April 16 from 4:21pm to 6:00pm
WHY – President Obama has failed to respond to our request to hold a cannabis summit and to provide cannabis advocates with seeds, buds, and cuttings

Click here to RSVP on Facebook!

Since Pennsylvania Avenue is District of Columbia land, adults can legally carry up to 2 ounces of cannabis and give it away to other adults without fear of arrest. The White House Seed Share & Cannabis Summit will start AFTER 4:20pm because we want this to be a fully legal event without any on-site consumption of cannabis.

As you may know, last weekend’s “smoke-in” ruffled the feathers of many mainstream cannabis advocacy groups because we openly broke the law by consuming cannabis in public.  Since we do not plan on breaking any DC laws on April 16, we are formally inviting all drug policy reform groups to join us for the Cannabis Summit that President Obama refuses to have with us.

History shows us that in order to change the laws, we must be persistent and that means more actions are needed. We all know the Emperor Wears No Clothes, but lighting up near a 51-foot inflatable joint is not going to deschedule cannabis overnight. It’s going to take ALL OF US to convince President Obama that the time for action is NOW!

Some of the press have reported that President Obama said that we should focus our efforts on Congress because they have the power to deschedule cannabis. Unfortunately nearly all of the media fails to mention that we, the cannabis activists of the District of Columbia, do not have Senators or a voting Representative to focus our efforts on. Thanks to the 23rd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, we have only the President to hold accountable, and accountable we’ll continue to hold him!

We do not expect the White House Seed Share & Cannabis Summit to be as well-attended as Reschedule420 because we are not aware of many groups of out-of-town activists who plan to join us. But we expect it to be just as awesome (minus the 51′ joint) and we know that we must all continue to put pressure on Obama to use his authority to deschedule cannabis NOW!

PLEASE NOTE: DCMJ is not giving out seeds, buds, or cuttings, rather volunteer cannabis advocates who support our efforts will be the generous ones this Saturday. Please read over the rules we drafted last year for the previous seed share.

As you know, any adult in Washington, DC can carry up to 2 ounces of cannabis on them on non-federal land, so the White House Seed Share & Cannabis Summit is open to all adults.  Lawful sharing of cannabis can only take place between adults 21 and older. We urge you to not feel embarrassed to ask someone who looks under 21 for their government-issued ID before sharing with them.

In regards to the sharing of cuttings, we define a cutting as a branch of a female cannabis plant that weighs under 1 ounce and is not in a growing medium (soil, perlite, rock wool, etc.). A clone is a cutting that is in a growing medium and these can be considered plants, which are not allowed outside of your home. We suggest preserving your cuttings by placing them in a ziplock baggie with water and when you get home you should start the rooting process in the growing medium of your choosing. The last thing we want is for cannabis growers to be detained or arrested for accidentally bringing rooted plants or clones.

We will have the sound wagon with us so seed sharers can talk about their their seeds, as well as why they believe Obama should immediately deschedule cannabis.  We look forward to your sharing of stories, seeds, buds, and cuttings this Saturday!

Get Your New DCMJ Filter Tips Fliers!

The order of 10,000 perforated filter tip fliers has arrived! To offset the cost of giving them away to dedicated activists, we are selling batches of 10 or 100 fliers for a donation of $4.20 or $42, respectively.


Pick up or Delivery:




FRONT:


BACK:

Small Victory: DC Council Creates Task Force on Social Cannabis Use

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO CONTACTED THE DC COUNCIL TO #AMENDTHEBAN!

Today the DC Council voted to create a Task Force that will develop recommendations on how the District of Columbia should go forward with social cannabis use.

The Task Force is to be composed of the following persons or their designees:

  • The Director of the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration
  • The Director of the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs
  • The Director of the Department of Health
  • The Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department
  • The Attorney General for the District of Columbia
  • Two members of the Council of the District of Columbia, as appointed
    by the Council

The Task Force has 120 days to create a report that shall include but not be limited to the following:

  • Effective ways to regulate venues to ensure the health and safety of staff, members, and invitees and the health and safety of the nearby public and the general public
  • Hours of operation
  • Occupancy limits
  • Whether food or beverages (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) may be sold on the premise
  • The District agencies that should be involved in regulating the venues
  • Security plans
  • The amount of marijuana an individual shall be permitted to possess at the venue
  • Whether a venue can store marijuana for a member, or invitee, of a venue
  • Penalties for violating the regulations
  • Licensing, including the requirements for licensure, such as proof of compliance with all applicable District laws, the application procedure, and fee structure
  • Cost of membership or admission
  • The limitations as to the location and the number of venues allowed to operate in the District
  • How all District residents can utilize the benefits of Initiative 71
  • Whether venues can operate in the District
  • Any other recommendations

Click here to download the PDF of the Task Force amendment passed by the DC Council

We look forward to working with the Task Force!



NBC Washington: DC Lawmakers Open Door to Pot Smoking in Private Clubs




WJLA: D.C. Council votes unanimously to study how city can allow pot smoking in private clubs