“Congressional Seed-In” Announced for April 2, 2019

Citizens to Lawfully Give Viable Cannabis Seeds to Members of Congress to Demand Federal Legislation to Grow Cannabis At Home

No Current Legislation in Congress Explicitly Legalizes Home Cultivation as Corporate Lobby Grab Leaves Many Americans No Way Grow

WASHINGTON, DC – On Tuesday, April 2, 2019, cannabis reform advocates from DC Marijuana Justice (“DCMJ”), Maryland Marijuana Justice (“MDMJ”), and Virginia Marijuana Justice (“VAMJ”) will descend on Capitol Hill to lawfully give away cannabis seeds to members of Congress and their staff, 21 years of age and older. The action is to call for cannabis consumer-friendly legislation that permits adults to grow cannabis in the comfort and privacy of their homes & backyards.

“As full legalization & descheduling of cannabis approaches cannabis consumers & medical patients must be able to travel throughout the United States without fear of arrest, detainment, or harassment,” says Dawn Lee-Carty, Founder of Speak Life, a mom and founder of Speak Life, an organization dedicated to educating parents and legislators on the benefits of cannabis. Ms. Lee-Carty came to advocate the use of CBD, a non-psychoactive chemical compound found in cannabis, and THC after pharmaceuticals failed to adequately treat her epileptic 11 year old daughter. Due to the federal prohibitions on cannabis, Ms. Lee-Carty cannot travel with her daughters medicine.

After voters in the District of Columbia approved Initiative 71 in November 2014 and Congress approved the law in February 2015, all adults aged 21 years of age or older can legally grow & possess small amounts cannabis in the District of Columbia. With the annual spring planting taking place after the last frost in late April, the “Congressional Seed-In” aims to help members of Congress and their staff lawfully start their cannabis gardens in the District of Columbia. Outdoor cannabis requires cannabis to be grown in cycle with the seasons, so a timely spring planting is integral to the success of the crop. However, not every American is afforded the right to grow their own cannabis. Instead many Americans are forced to buy their cannabis from dispensaries, which costs as much as 10 times more than home grown cannabis.

“The only legislation we see in the 116th Congress moving is backed by lobbyists to deal with business interests,” says Adam Eidinger, Proposer of Initiative 71 . “We’re going up to the Hill to encourage members of Congress and their staff that they represent more cannabis consumers than cannabis businesses. We want to legally grow cannabis as a basic right and this is frankly more important to me than access to banks or tax reform for huge marijuana businesses,” adds Edinger.

WHO: Members of DCMJ, MDMJ and VAMJ, expert growers, and cannabis reform activists
WHAT: “Congressional Seed-In” – A Seed Giveaway for members of Congress and their staff
WHEN: April 2, 2019, 11:00 am until 4:20 pm – Ending Rally Near Capitol Steps on East side
WHERE: All Congressional Offices in Washington, DC
WHY: Citizens demand meaningful legislation that fully ends prohibition cannabis cultivation for every adult and allows the movement of cannabis between all States.

“I don’t want cannabis grown using nuclear or coal power. I want it grown using natural sunlight. The current system of using costly warehouses to grow cannabis plants under synthetic light using synthetic chemicals is bad for consumers and bad for the environment. There is a better way,” says Ms. Lee-Carty, who currently grows using LED technology, but would prefer to grow her daughter’s cannabis outdoors..

“The age of utilizing expensive warehouses to grow cannabis is a relic of prohibition and DCMJ & MDMJ believe that cannabis should return to the fields from which it was formerly grown,” says MDMJ co-founder Kris Furnish. “Congress and state leaders have been standing in the way of cannabis consumer friendly reform, while poll after poll show that the American public fully supports the full legalization of cannabis, including home grow.

ABOUT DCMJ
Since its founding in 2013, DCMJ has lead the nation in creative and high-profile cannabis reform activism. After introducing and passing ballot initiative 71, which legalized the possession and cultivation of cannabis in the District of Columbia, DCMJ organized two large seed giveaways that provided all adults the means to grow cannabis for themselves. Since then DCMJ has deployed giant 51’ inflatable joints outside the White House, the 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 home grown cannabis at the Inauguration of President Donald Trump to 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. The “Congressional Seed-In” is DCMJ’s fourth annual “Reschedule 4/20,” day of action to highlight the need for meaningful cannabis reform legislation in the United States. In 2018 and 2019, aligned organizations MDMJ & VAMJ were formed to advocate for cannabis reform in Maryland and Virginia.

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CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK!

Since Ballot Initiative 71 passed last November, the DC Cannabis Campaign has received many requests for cannabis seeds. We’ve said all along, “ask a friend, they might have some seeds to give you.” Still, we know that not everyone has friends who have seeds available to share.

To address this need, on the 1-month anniversary of Ballot Initiative 71 becoming law, the DC Cannabis Campaign is organizing two seed shares to facilitate personal home cultivation of cannabis permitted under the new law. This will be DC residents’ opportunity to share seeds with other adults and start down the path of legally growing your own cannabis in the safety and privacy of your home.

The first seed share will take place at Libertine, an absinthe bar in the Adams Morgan neighborhood from 5:30pm to 8:00pm on Thursday, March 26 and the second seed share will take place a few days later on Saturday, March 28 from 4:20pm to 7:00pm at the DC Cannabis Campaign Headquarters.

WHO: Cannabis Seed Sharers and Seed Seekers
WHAT: Spring Seed Share
WHERE: Libertine, 2435 18th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 and DC Cannabis Campaign Headquarters, 2448 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20008
WHEN: 5:30pm to 8:00pm, Thursday, March 26, 2015 @ Libertine
4:20pm to 7:00pm, Saturday, March 28, 2015 @ DC Cannabis Campaign Headquarters
WHY: To provide DC residents with the seeds to legally grow cannabis at home

SEED SHARE RULES

1) No money may exchange hands while sharing seeds. This is a seed share, not seed sale! The law allows the gift of up to one ounce of cannabis, but not sales, trades, or any type of service in exchange for the cannabis. If we see money changing hands, you will be asked to leave. The only place money should be visible is when you buy something at Libertine’s bar. IMPORTANT: buying someone food or drink in exchange for cannabis is illegal!

2) Do not carry more than 2 ounces at anytime. The law allows you to carry no more than 2 ounces of cannabis (including seeds) outside your home. Do not leave the seed share with more than 2 ounces cannabis (including seeds) or you risk being arrested on your way home. If we see you with more than 2 ounces of cannabis (including seeds), you will be asked to leave.

3) Do not give away more than 1 ounce of seeds to any one person. The law allows a maximum gift of 1 ounce between adults. So if you showed up with 2 ounces of seeds, you could give 1 ounce to one person and 1 ounce to another person, or you can be truly generous and give a couple seeds to every person who attends the seed share. But under no circumstances, should anyone be giving away more than 1 ounce at any time.

4) All sharing must be between two adults aged 21 and older. You MUST bring your government issued ID. No exceptions. While we will accept out-of-state IDs, these events are intended for DC residents only.

5) Cannabis seeds must be in your possession at all times. You can bring a container to hold your bagged seeds, but you must stay with your seeds at all times and give them away to other adults. Unattended cannabis seeds may be given away.

6) The DC Cannabis Campaign will not share seeds. Rather each adult will share their seeds with another adult. There won’t be a seed donation jar because someone would need to be responsible for the jar being under 2 ounces at all times.

7) Be patient. We are instituting a maximum of 80 people inside the venues and as people leave, more people will be able to come inside to share their seeds. The law does not prevent adults from sharing seeds in public, so get to know others in the line.

8) Respect the venues. Having a lot of people inside to share seeds can result in damage to the venues. Please treat the venues as you would treat your own home. The seed shares are taking place on private property and the owners are being generous by allowing the seed shares to take place. Disruptive guests will be asked to leave.

9) No consuming of cannabis. No smoking or vaping is allowed. We ask that you go home or to a friend’s house to consume your cannabis. If you are found to be smoking or vaping cannabis, you will be asked to leave the premises.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Have cannabis seeds but not sure what strain the seed is? We expect many people to bring random cannabis seeds they’ve collected over the years to share with other adults. These seeds may still be viable, and more importantly, they can provide a first-time grower the opportunity to grow cannabis at home. Many people might write off these “unknown” seeds as worthless, but for someone who’s never grown cannabis before, they can help immensely. We suggest bagging these seeds up before you arrive and write the words “Unknown” on a piece of paper inside the bag or on the outside of the bag itself.

Have seeds AND you know what strain they are? You’re a cannabis superstar! Many growers would like to know the strain they are growing and your “known” seeds could be very helpful to many novice growers. We suggest bagging these up before you arrive and include the name of the strain on a piece of paper inside the bag or on the outside of the bag itself. We also suggest putting 6 or fewer “known” seeds in each bag in order to ensure as many people as possible have access to your seeds.

Don’t have any cannabis seeds at all? Please bring baggies or containers to put your newly-obtained seeds in. We also suggest bringing a pencil & paper to write down the names of different strains you obtain at the seed share. You may end up with a couple random seeds or you might end up with multiple different types of strains; it all depends on who shows up. Lastly, if you do not plan growing cannabis, we politely ask you to not come to these seed shares. We want the seeds that are shared to go to folks who want to grow this year.

What about clones? Clones are cuttings of live cannabis plants. Clones are popular among growers because the sex of the plant is known and the strain of the plant is also known. Unfortunately, Ballot Initiative 71 does not permit the sharing of clones. Therefore, the only way to legally create clones is to grow a plant from seed and make clones of that plant inside of your home. If you bring a clone to the seed share, you will be asked to leave.

TIMING

The Seed Shares will take place on the evenings of Thursday, March 26 and Saturday, March 28. We ask those with seeds to share to arrive 15 minutes early (5:15pm on Thursday & 4:05pm on Saturday).

KNOW THE LAW

We ask that everyone take a few minutes to re-read Ballot Initiative 71 so you know and can comply with the law.

These seed shares will be the campaign’s last public events. We anticipate winding down the campaign committee once the campaign’s debts have been paid off. In accordance with rule #1 (no money exchange), the campaign will not be taking any donations during the seed share, but you can still donate to the campaign on our website or by check.

We look forward to sharing seeds with you! Please RSVP!