Congressional Leaders and Social Justice Advocates Call for Cannabis Decriminalization during Cannabis Summit in Washington, DC
30+ Organizations Join Forces for 420 Unity Day of Action Press Conference, Lobby Day, and White House Candlelight Vigil
Washington D.C., April 16 – Last Prisoner Project (LPP) has mobilized the largest coalition of bi-partisan cannabis advocacy, industry, and grassroots organizations, as well as individual activists to convene in Washington D.C. on April 18, 2024, for a 420 Unity Day of Action. A number of lobbying events have been planned to apply public pressure on Congress and the President to take action to fully legalize cannabis, free those still in prison, and provide retroactive relief.
Advocates will be joined by elected officials who have been leading the fight for cannabis reform including
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon),
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Oregon), and others to encourage their colleagues on both sides of the aisle to end the hypocrisy of cannabis criminalization.
On
April 17, the coalition will hold a press conference at the
U.S. Capitol’s House Triangle, organized by LPP, at
8:45 a.m. prior to the start of the
National Cannabis Festival Policy Summit at the
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library
where LPP is hosting
Lobby Day Training from 4-5 p.m. in Conference Room 401-F.
On
April 18, coalition advocates will convene at the
U.S. Capitol Visitor Center
Auditorium
at 9 a.m. for Lobby Day programming and meetings with elected officials and their staff.
Capping off the 420 Unity Day of Action, the public is invited to attend a
candlelight vigil
in front of the White House at
Lafayette Square
on
April 18
from
7-10 p.m.
Since
announcing the 420 Unity Day of Action, there have been a number of developments that continue to build momentum for cannabis justice. After President Biden mentioned his cannabis actions during his
State of the Union address, the White House hosted a roundtable to uplift the Administration’s expanded pardons. Additionally, members of Congress have continued to send letters to the Biden Administration and the DEA to encourage the full descheduling of cannabis.
Although
24 states and D.C. have legalized adult-use cannabis sales and the vast majority of the U.S. population now lives in states with some form of legal cannabis, tens of thousands of people remain in state and federal prison. It is imperative that as the federal government
seeks to downgrade cannabis’s status from a Schedule I drug, advocates are pushing for the full legalization and decriminalization of cannabis.
For supporters who can’t make it to D.C. but would still like to join our fight for cannabis justice, we encourage you to contact your elected officials by
sending them a letter and
calling their offices urging them to decriminalize cannabis now.
420 Unity Day of Action is part of the
National Cannabis Festival which takes place at
RFK Campus Festival Grounds
on
April 19th
and
20th where directly-impacted advocates will join celebrity voices like
M-1 of Dead Prez and JoJo Simmons for multiple panel conversations with partners on how we can push the movement forward. This will culminate with headlined concerts by
Thundercat
and
Wu-Tang Clan with
Redman.
The broad array of advocate groups spans across political boundaries and includes:
- Last Prisoner Project (LPP) (@lastprisonerproject)
- Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) (@drugpolicyalliance)
- Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) (@ssdpofficial)
- NORML (@natlnorml)
- Veterans Cannabis Coalition (@veteranscannacoalition)
- Parabola Center (@parabolacenter)
- Reason Foundation
- Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP) (@leactionpartnership)
- National Cannabis Festival (@natlcannabisfest)
- National Craft Cannabis Coalition (@nationalcraftcannabiscoalition)
- National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) (@nationalcannabisindustry)
- Minority Cannabis Business Association (MCBA) (@mincannbusassoc)
- Indigenous Cannabis Industry Association (ICIA) (@indigenouscannabisindustry)
- Asian Cannabis Roundtable (@asiancannabisroundtable)
- National Association of Black Cannabis Lawyers (NABCL) (@nabcl_llc)
- FreedomGrow (@FreedomGrowForever)
- Marijuana Justice (@thcjusticenow)
- Doctors for Drug Policy Reform (@d4dprorg)
- United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) (@ufcwunion)
- Bay Area Latino Cannabis Alliance (BALCA) (@balca_bayarea)
- Supernova Women (@supernovawomen)
- Minorities for Medical Marijuana (@m4mmunited)
- Better Organizing for Winning Legalization (@thebowlpac)
- Midwest Cannawomen (@midwestcannawomen)
- DCMJ (@DCMJ2014)
- Just Leadership USA (JLUSA) (@justleadershipusa)
- National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (@nacdl)
- United For Decrim
- Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) (@marijuanapolicyproject)
For Media Inquiries:
Jason Ortiz
Director of Strategic Initiatives
ABOUT LAST PRISONER PROJECT
Last Prisoner Project is dedicated to freeing those incarcerated due to the War on Drugs, reuniting their families, and helping them rebuild their lives. As laws change, there remains a fundamental injustice for individuals whose conviction is no longer a crime. We work to repair these harms through legal intervention, constituent support, direct advocacy, and policy change.
Visit www.lastprisonerproject.org or text FREEDOM to 24365 to learn more.
