For Immediate Release
July 7, 2021

WASHINGTON, DC – The following is a statement from Adam Eidinger, co-founder of District of Columbia Marijuana Justice (DCMJ), on the decision by U.S. Olympic Track & Field (USATF) to ban Sha’Carri Richardson from the Olympics after testing positive for legally consuming cannabis in Oregon after learning of her mother’s death last month just days before winning the women’s 100 meter final at U.S. Olympic Trials in Oregon last month.

“The decision to ban the fastest woman on earth from the 100-meter and 4×100-meter relay is travesty of justice and a disgusting tribute to the failed war on drugs that has done far more to destroy lives for 50 years than even the deadliest wars or pandemic. Shaming Sha’Carri for consuming cannabis in a state where it is legal to do so while she was distraught over getting the shocking news from a reporter of her mother’s death is a despicable act of abuse and selfishness that is way out of touch with the majority of Americans, who support the legalization of cannabis. This decision must be condemned as strongly as possible. For the first time in my life I plan to boycott watching the Olympics. While President Biden, notorious for writing and backing legislation that has contributed exponentially to the incarceration of non-violent cannabis users, hid behind his statement that ‘rules are the rules’ regarding Sha’Carri, he seemed to open the door to re-evaluating those rules when he added, ‘Whether they should remain that way is a different issue.’ However, it’s not enough to question the rules or condemn this deplorable decision. We must have changes immediately.”

DCMJ calls for these first steps to remedy this and other related injustices and unscientific and irrational policy decisions:

• USATF reinstating Sha’Carri immediately and allowing her to compete in the 100-meter and 4×100-meter relay
• Congress joining states all around the country in legalizing cannabis for medical and adult use.
• President Biden using his regulatory powers to de-schedule cannabis as a federal Schedule I substance in order to launch comprehensive and conclusive scientific research into the medicinal uses of cannabis to treat physical and psychological pain.
• The immediate release of all Americans incarcerated for the non-violent use of banned substances, beginning with cannabis.
• An apology to Sha’Carri from USATF, the International Olympic Committee and President Biden for promoting the unscientifically backed and racist ‘war on drugs’ that has led to political demagoguery and the shaming and stigmatizing of good people, who use cannabis, live normal lives, and make positive contributions everyday to quality of life around the world.

ABOUT DC MARIJUANA JUSTICE Since its founding in 2013, DCMJ has led the nation in creative and high-profile cannabis reform activism. After introducing and passing DC’s Initiative 71 in 2014, which voters legalized the possession and cultivation of cannabis, DCMJ organized three large seed giveaways that provided all adults and Congressional staffers the means to grow cannabis for themselves, deployed giant 51-foot inflatable joints outside the Capitol, the White House, the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Times Square in New York City, the 2016 Presidential Debates, Annapolis Statehouse and Boston’s Freedom Rally, as well as distributing over 10,000 joints of District of Columbia homegrown cannabis at the Inauguration of President Donald Trump, and attempting to distribute 1,227 joints at the congressional “Joint Session” in 2017, where U.S. Capitol Police unlawfully arrested seven DCMJ activists (All charges were dropped the following day). In 2021, DCMJ conceptualized and launched the “Joints for Jabs” coronavirus vaccination incentive program that was spontaneously adopted around the U.S., including by the State of Washington. Also in 2021, DCMJ was behind The Great Commonwealth Cannabis Seed Share, collecting and distributing about 20,000 seeds on the first day of legal home craft cultivation in Virginia. In 2018, 2019, and 2021, aligned organizations MDMJ, VAMJ, COMJ, and NYMJ were formed to advocate for cannabis reform in Maryland, Virginia, Colorado, and New York. DCMJ demands cannabis be removed from the Controlled Substances Act and all Americans are given the right to grow cannabis in the safety and privacy of their homes.

Contact: Adam Eidinger, 202-744-2671, adam@dcmj.org
Ken Bazinet, 202-660-2449, ken@collectiveconsulting.net

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Statement from Adam Eidinger, co-founder of District of Columbia Marijuana Justice (DCMJ), in response to the White House firing staffers for past cannabis use:

“We were outraged to learn that the White House is using past cannabis use as a cause for dismissal of staffers. It would be an understatement to call reports of these dismissals arbitrary. We are quite certain that the White House does not fire staffers for use of alcohol, a scientifically proven deadly and harmful substance. We’re confident there is even alcohol stored away in the White House, and not just in the residence. The White House is clearly ignoring that voters in the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis, and that nearby Virginia and Maryland allow for medical use of cannabis. If the White House wants the best and brightest working there on behalf of the American people, it needs to tolerate all viewpoints and lifestyle choices, including the legal use of cannabis.

By taking these punitive actions, the White House is informally asking current and future applicants to lie. Lies are the enemy of democracy. If applicants know that being honest about past or current lawful cannabis use will prevent them from working at the White House, then they have no recourse but to lie about their current or past cannabis use. This is bad public policy and President Biden should understand that the destructive and failed War on Drugs does nothing but hurt the American people, especially people of color.

We expected that President Biden would evolve from this twisted 20th century view of cannabis use and adopt the positions that an overwhelming majority of Americans have embraced. From ending the use of cannabis laws in the abhorrent practice of racial profiling, to clearing the way for conclusive research into all the medical applications for cannabis, to keeping the government from intruding further into private lives, the majority of Americans want an end now to cannabis prohibition.

We want to see this administration succeed in righting many wrongs. We’ve even tried to be helpful. Our upcoming ‘Joints For Jabs’ cannabis giveaway is in direct response to the administration’s ‘Go Big’ effort to get Americans vaccinated against COVID-19. We are quite confident the message behind ‘Joints for Jabs’ is reaching a significant portion of supporters and non-supporters of the president.

This White House needs to think about finding a new place for itself in the legalization movement and avoid an unnecessary confrontation with a key bloc in the Democrats’ political base. With these firings, the administration is sending out a dangerous message in this era of cannabis enlightenment that is going to force a meaningful reaction by those threatened by the actions of this White House.

We call upon President Biden to use his executive power to de-schedule cannabis immediately. There are millions of Americans living in states with legal cannabis that should not be excluded from working in the White House, or a job of any kind in public service. If you need advice on how to truly embrace ‘Marijuana Justice,’ we urge you to consult your vice president, who as a senator introduced the Marijuana Justice Act.”

ABOUT DC MARIJUANA JUSTICE

Since its founding in 2013, DCMJ has led the nation in creative and high-profile cannabis reform activism. After introducing and passing DC’s Initiative 71 in 2014, which voters legalized the possession and cultivation of cannabis, DCMJ organized three large seed giveaways that provided all adults & Congressional staffers the means to grow cannabis for themselves, deployed giant 51’ inflatable joints outside the Capitol, the White House, the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Times Square in New York City, the 2016 Presidential Debates, Annapolis Statehouse and Boston’s Freedom Rally, as well as distributing over 10,000 joints of District of Columbia homegrown cannabis at the Inauguration of President Donald Trump, and attempting to distribute 1,227 joints at the congressional “Joint Session” in 2017, where U.S. Capitol Police unlawfully arrested seven DCMJ activists (All charges were dropped the following day). DCMJ will distribute 5,000 joints at vaccination sites across the District of Columbia on April 20, 2021 in conjunction with its upcoming “Joints For Jabs” cannabis giveaway. In 2018, 2019, and 2021, aligned organizations MDMJ, VAMJ , COMJ, and NYMJ were formed to advocate for cannabis reform in Maryland, Virginia, Colorado, and New York. DCMJ demands cannabis be removed from the Controlled Substances Act and all Americans are given the right to grow cannabis in the safety and privacy of their homes.

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WASHINGTON, DC – Like many groups across the United States, DC Marijuana Justice (“DCMJ”) discontinued its regular in-person meetings when the coronavirus pandemic began last year. Without a safe way for citizens to publicly gather to advocate for reforming the cannabis laws in the District of Columbia, DCMJ is excited for the vaccinations to be widely available. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s recent announcement of forthcoming coronavirus vaccines is welcome news to DCMJ. To celebrate this momentous occasion and thank people for getting vaccinated, dozens of DC homegrowers will lawfully distribute free bags of cannabis outside vaccination centers as soon as the general public is able to get vaccinated.

Dubbed “Joints for Jabs,” a play on the jab of a vaccine injection, this community effort aims to highlight the need for further local and national cannabis reform while also advocating for equitable distribution of the critical vaccine. DCMJ notes that to safely share a cannabis joint without potentially contributing to the spread of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, each user must be vaccinated–an objective that necessitates accessibility for all District residents. The District of Columbia’s Department of Health has not yet named the public vaccination sites, but upon their identification DCMJ will issue a follow up to this release providing each ‘Joints for Jabs’ location, dates, and hours of operation.

“We are looking for ways to safely celebrate the end of the pandemic and we know nothing brings people together like cannabis,” says DCMJ co-founder Nikolas Schiller. “DCMJ believes that cannabis should be consumed safely and responsibly, and the pandemic has made this incredibly difficult for many adults to share their homegrown cannabis. When enough adults are inoculated with the coronavirus vaccine, it will be time to celebrate – not just the end of the pandemic, but the beginning of the end of cannabis prohibition in the United States.”

During the pandemic cannabis dispensaries have been considered essential businesses. However, due to a patchwork of state laws and a lack of federal action, millions of Americans still source cannabis from the underground economy, which has varying degrees of quality and safety. As homegrowers, DCMJ members gifting cannabis will only share cannabis grown free of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers.

INAUGURATION JOINT GIVEAWAY POSTPONED UNTIL AT LEAST SUMMER

DCMJ does not anticipate that enough citizens will be inoculated with a coronavirus vaccine by the time President-Elect Joe Biden is sworn in on January 20, 2021 to safely hold a joint giveaway. More importantly, assuming the pandemic has subsided President-Elect Biden has indicated there will be a summer Inauguration event on the National Mall as is traditionally done in January.

On January 20, 2017, at the Inauguration of President Donald Trump, DCMJ organized a massive cannabis distribution demonstration called “#Trump420.”  The wildly popular protest to end marijuana prohibition highlighted the fact that cannabis reform is not a partisan issue, but an American issue that needed to be addressed by the incoming president.  Thanks to local, national, and international media attention, by 10:00 AM a line of cannabis reform advocates stretched over 6 blocks long, and by the end of the day over 10,000 cannabis joints were given away to adults of all political persuasions.  Unfortunately, nearly four years later, cannabis remains illegal under federal law.

In 2020, the House of Representatives passed historic legislation called the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act (“MORE Act”). This legislation would remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act and enact various criminal and social justice reforms related to cannabis, including the expungement of prior convictions. However, the Senate did not take up this important legislation in the remaining days of the 116th Congress.  DCMJ expects that the MORE Act will be introduced and passed in the 117th Congress and hope Democratic leaders take action quickly.

“While no legislation is perfect, the MORE Act addresses many demands that DC Marijuana Justice has been making for years,” says Adam Eidinger, proposer of DC’s Initiative 71 and co-founder of DCMJ.  “We asked Presidents Obama and Trump, and now we are asking President-Elect Biden to take executive action on cannabis reform within the first 100 days.”

ABOUT DC MARIJUANA JUSTICE

Since its founding in 2013, DCMJ has led the nation in creative and high-profile cannabis reform activism. After introducing and passing DC’s Initiative 71 in 2014, which voters legalized the possession and cultivation of cannabis, DCMJ organized three large seed giveaways that provided all adults & Congressional staffers the means to grow cannabis for themselves, deployed giant 51′ inflatable joints outside the White House, the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Times Square in New York City, the 2016 Presidential Debates, and Boston’s Freedom Rally, as well as distributing over 10,000 joints of District of Columbia homegrown cannabis at the Inauguration of President Donald Trump, and most recently, attempting to distribute 1,227 joints at the congressional “Joint Session” in 2017, where U.S. Capitol Police unlawfully arrested seven DCMJ activists (All charges were dropped the following day).  In 2018 and 2019, aligned organizations MDMJ, VAMJ , and COMJ, were formed to advocate for cannabis reform in Maryland, Virginia, and Colorado. DCMJ demands cannabis be removed from the Controlled Substances Act and all Americans are given the right to grow cannabis in the safety and privacy of their homes.

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SALISBURY, MD – On Tuesday, October 2, 2018, Salisbury University progressive student activist Jake Burdett attended a medical marijuana protest against Congressman Andy Harris organized by Maryland’s new cannabis advocacy group Maryland Marijuana Justice (MDMJ). At the meeting inside the Congressional office that resulted from the protest, Mr. Burdett briefly livestreamed one of Harris’ staffers without his permission, which Mr. Burdett did not realize was a felony – or even illegal in the state of Maryland at all. Mr. Burdett deleted the livestream the following day after he found out his recording was illegal, but Congressman Harris dropped the hammer on Burdett to try to make an example out of him by deciding to press felony charges.

“Jake, who is a serious student leader, has a bright political future ahead of him that Representative Andy Harris wants to tarnish. In his honest attempt to provide the public with transparency into actions of a Congressional office that regularly insults marijuana reformers with false accusations, Jake’s livestream served as a conduit for the public to witness the endemic corruption in Salisbury,” says Adam Eidinger, Co-Founder of MDMJ. Eidinger adds, “MDMJ activists protested Harris for his backwards views on cannabis and refusals to meet with cannabis reform activists, so we feel Jake is being treated unfairly because of his role in the Democratic Party as Vice-Chair of the Wicomico Democratic Central Committee.”

Although Mr. Burdett is pleading guilty and he has personally apologized to Congressman Harris’ staffer, he did not realize the nonconsensual livestream was against Maryland’s “all-party consent” law at the time. “Is it unreasonable for a 20 year old to think that it’s legal to record a staffer of a United States Congressman in a public space? In a society that supposedly values transparency in government, I do find it odd that Jake can be found guilty of the ‘crime’ of recording the staff of elected government representatives in a taxpayer funded space,” says MDMJ Co-Founder Kris Furnish.

“By deciding to throw the book at Mr. Burdett for an honest mistake, one that was fixed almost immediately, it shows how partisan and petty Congressman Harris has become. He clearly wants to chill citizen participation in government,” says Eidinger. “Rep. Harris is adding to his recent list of bad PR moves that includes meeting with known White Supremacist Chuck Johnson, and planning to meet with the leader, Tomio Okamura, of a far right wing party in Czech Republic, whose secretary called for the gassing of ‘Jews, gays, and Roma’.”

“Mr. Burdett’s plea, which will take place on March 1, in Wicomico County, and Harris’ slew of prior racist scandals, should not distract from the original issue that brought me and other advocates to the protest in the first place – the legalization of cannabis,” says Furnish. “Rep. Harris wants to pretend to be victimized by a 20 year old’s deleted livestream, while he supports the racist war on drugs that actually victimizes thousands of people a day by locking them up for the victimless crime of smoking marijuana, a non-addictive substance with many medicinal benefits. Rep. Harris is a medical doctor, so I’d think he of all people would recognize the medicinal benefits of marijuana, and how it could be used as an alternative to pharmaceutical drugs such as painkillers, which are an epidemic in Rep. Harris’ district right now. We can’t help but wonder if Rep. Harris’ seemingly irrational opposition to legal marijuana has anything to do with the $42,200 he’s accepted from the pharmaceutical lobby in the 2017-2018 election cycle, which vehemently opposes any form of marijuana legalization,” concludes Furnish.

RachelRamone Donlan Files Civil Case Against Rep. Andy Harris For Slamming Door On Her

Lawsuit Seeks $10,420 in Damages

WASHINGTON, DC – Today cannabis reform advocate and DC Marijuana Justice (“DCMJ”) volunteer, RachelRamone Donlan, filed a civil complaint in Form 95 against Congressman Andy Harris for his violent actions against her on October 2, 2018. In her Form 95, Ms. Donlan outlines that Rep. Harris’ untoward behavior bruised her leg and the ensuing incorrect press reports tarnished her reputation as a non-violent advocate for the reform of cannabis laws.  Ms. Donlan civil lawsuit seeks $10,420 in damage for the pain and suffering caused by Rep. Harris.

Background on the Incident Triggering Ms. Donlan’s Case

At an August 10, 2018 town hall meeting in Salisbury, Maryland, Rep. Harris gave a pledge to Ms. RachelRamone Donlan to have a meeting concerning medical marijuana.  When she saw him walking down the hallway towards his Capitol Hill office on October 2, she believed he was going to finally talk to her. As Ms. Donlan tries to speak to Rep. Harris, not touching him or yelling at him, she rushes to follow him into his public office not knowing he was entering through a private side door about 15 feet away from the actual main public entrance that was open at the time. Instead of welcoming her or saying use the other entrance to anyone present, he quickly slammed the door in her face, and physically hurt her leg and knee.  Ms. Donlan, who is disabled, weighs about 90 lbs, and suffers from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, which is a genetic connective tissue disorder that causes her intense physical pain.  She has been consuming medical marijuana since 2011 for pain relief and as a result is opioid-free.

“I was trying to speak to the Congressman about how cannabis saved my life,” said Ms. Donlan, “but instead of pausing to listen, he slammed the door on my leg and knee.” Ms. Donlan proceeded to stage an “overdose” outside of Rep. Harris’ office and in order to deal with the physical pain caused by the congressman and his staff, she lit up a cannabis “joint” and was arrested by the U.S. Capitol Police for consumption of marijuana after about 1 hour on the floor.  During that period Congressman Harris released a statement to the press alleging violence had been done to him and the following day he released a second statement on his congressional website. “Congressman Harris would rather people take pills than utilize the healing properties of cannabis,” concludes Ms.  Donlan, who wrote an “apology,” to Congressman Harris and continued to seek dialogue with him before making this decision to file the formal complaint.

For over four years cannabis reform advocates have sought meetings with Rep. Harris and for four years he’s been evasive, misleading, and outright hostile to cannabis reform advocates. The October 2 incident only showed how far out of his way Rep. Harris would go to avoid civilized debate: he hid in his office like a coward. Twenty minutes later Rep. Harris came outside of his office with the U.S. Capitol Police, he couldn’t even identify the person who allegedly assaulted him.  He did recognize Adam Eidinger, a constituent that moved to Salisbury after Harris inserted legislation in the DC Budget preventing lawmaking authority to DC elected officials on matters relating to cannabis reform. Rep. Harris claim he hurt his wrist slamming the door on Rachel is an attempt to spin his cowardice to address cannabis reformers. Harris describes political violence that didn’t occur in a Wall Street Journal Op-Ed, but Rep. Harris’ negligent action of slamming his office door on Ms. Donlan resulted in bruising to her leg and knee was the only violence that day.  

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