Rob Hofmann
Submit Your Vote for SSDP’s Board of Directors
Elections for SSDP’s Class of 2022 Board of Directors are taking place today! SSDP remains unique in the fact that our organization is youth-led, meaning that ⅔ of the governing body of the organization consists of students and/or young people under the age of 30. Each year, the network is tasked with electing new directors to the Board. This year, we have 9
Introducing Drexel University SSDP
Written by Justin Serwinski ‘21, Madi Rockett ‘21, and Naomi Shifman ‘21 How did you hear about SSDP? After Justin’s initial outreach to start an organization focused on psychedelic medicine at Drexel, he met with a few faculty and students who appeared interested. During our first meeting, a faculty member discussed how it might be advantageous to integrate with SSDP
Panel: Drug Legalization as a Public Health Measure
Every year, there are more than 1.5 million drug arrests in the United States. More than 80% of these arrests are for possession only. Twenty-seven states and the District of Columbia have already decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana, and some are exploring the merits of decriminalizing other drugs. While drug decriminalization is a step in the right
Top 10 Drug Policy Reform Moments of 2021
by Robert Hofmann and Mike Liszewski With 2021 drawing to a close, Students for Sensible Drug Policy is reflecting on the drug policy milestones and victories over the past twelve months. Despite the challenges to political organizing that COVID provided, SSDPers and other drug policy reform advocates were busy advancing sensible laws and programs to end criminalization, reduce the harms
SSDP Event: Follow The Money! Taking Federal Action On Drug Policy Through Appropriations
Money. We all need it, and Congress has a lot of it. In July, the House Appropriations Committee passed a bill to allocate almost $69.5 million to expand syringe service programs – quadrupling the funding that was allocated last year. The Biden Administration has been slowly adopting more harm reduction-related language when discussing issues of drug policy but it is
Event: It’s Time To Defund The Eradication of Psychoactive Plants in Colombia
Join Students for Sensible Drug Policy, Bay Area Latino Cannabis Alliance, Muisca Capital Group, and the Urban Survivors Union this Wednesday, August 11th, for our event demanding that Congress stop using US tax dollars on dangerous, ineffective aerial crop eradication and to shift those resources toward supporting research and economic support for local indigenous communities. Hear from Colombian researchers, social justice advocates,
Introducing SSDP’s McHenry, Illinois Ambassador
Written by Taylor Hansen ‘21, McHenry, Illinois SSDP Ambassador How did you hear about SSDP?I heard about SSDP when I attended a few conferences relating to the studies of psychedelics. I originally heard about the UK organization and was thrilled when I learned there was one also active in the US. Why did you want to get involved/what made you
SSDP Sign-On Letter: Oppose Aerial Crop Eradication
Students for Sensible Drug Policy is circulating a sign-on letter for organizations and SSDP chapters to urge Congress to eliminate funding for aerial crop eradication in Colombia on the bases of environmental justice, human rights, public health, and sensible drug policy. In 2014, the World Health Organization found that Glyphosate, which is used in aerial fumigation, was and is responsible
Connecticut House and Senate pass cannabis legalization with strong protections for students
For immediate release Primary contact: Jason Ortiz, SSDP Executive Directorjason@ssdo.org, (860) 639-8101 Secondary contact: Zach Green, President of UConn Hartford SSDPz.tyler.green@gmail.com, (860) 671-7414 Hartford – Connecticut became the 19th state to pass cannabis legalization through the legislature when the House of Representatives and Senate both passed SB1201. The bill is expected to be signed by the Governor today. “While stronger
78 Students for Sensible Drug Policy Chapters Call On Congress To End Federal Marijuana Prohibition
For Immediate Release Primary contact: Rob Hofmann, United States Outreach and Policy Coordinator, Students for Sensible Drug Policy(607) 316-0227, robert@ssdp.org Secondary Contact: Jason Ortiz, Executive Director of Students for Sensible Drug Policy(860) 639-8101, jason@ssdp.org Today, 78 Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) chapters sent a letter to Speaker Pelosi, House Majority Leader Hoyer, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy urging
Introducing Heller School for Social Policy and Management SSDP
Written by Ali Carney ‘21, Heller School for Social Policy and Management SSDP Chapter Leader How did you hear about SSDP? I heard about SSDP through volunteering with the organization Baystaters for Natural Medicine. Once I expressed the idea of starting some sort of drug policy working group at Heller, a colleague of mine brought SSDP to my attention once
The MORE Act Returns to Congress Tomorrow. Act Now.
The Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act is expected to be re-introduced in the House of Representatives tomorrow (May 28th).In 2020, the House made history by passing the MORE Act, which would end the criminalization of marijuana at the federal level and provide grants to communities disproportionately impacted by the War on Drugs. With a split Senate and ever-increasing
Introducing SSDP’s Dubuque Ambassador
Written by Evan Hudson ‘21, Dubuque, Iowa SSDP Ambassador How did you hear about SSDP? I’ve been aware of SSDP’s work since high school, but only recently looked into getting involved as an extension of my work in harm reduction. Why did you want to get involved/what made you decide to start an SSDP Ambassadorship? I was inspired to become
SSDP Action Alert – We Need Your Support To Fund Drug Research!
Original action alert language written by Lindsey Galbo ’19, Wake Forest University School of Medicine SSDP Chapter Leader and Scientific Research Issue Group Member As drug policy reformers, it is important for us to recognize the necessity of funding drug research to better understand factors that contribute to different types of substance use, new potential pharmacological and behavioral treatments, harm
SSDP Statement on the Derek Chauvin Trial
In his trial for the murder of George Floyd, Derek Chauvin’s defense is arguing that George Floyd’s death was not a homicide, but a result of prior substance use. The defense is trying to put forth a narrative that “maximal restraint” was necessary because George Floyd had drugs in his system. This is abhorrent. A person having drugs in their
SSDP Supporting Student Speech Rights at the Supreme Court
Written with support from Kat Murti ‘09 and Jason Ortiz ‘08 In 2017, a Pennsylvania public school student identified as ‘B.L.’ expressed her frustration about not making the varsity cheerleading squad on Snapchat. Despite the app’s reputation and purpose, the image she sent on a Saturday and out of class (including many profanities) was saved and ended up in the
Introducing Beloit College SSDP
Written by Isabella Callery ‘21, Beloit College SSDP Chapter Leader How did you hear about SSDP? I found SSDP through the MAPS website, which urged students interested in pursuing careers in psychedelic studies to start a branch of SSDP at their school. After a bit more research, I could not agree more! Why did you want to get involved/what made
SSDP’s Federal Policy Agenda for the 117th Congress Has Been Released
Last month, SSDP’s U.S. Policy Council completed our Federal Policy Agenda for the 117th Congress. Written by SSDP members, alumni, and supporters, this document shows federal representatives and administrators our roadmap for fighting the War on Drugs and promoting sensible drug policy over the next 2 years. The agenda consists of six main sections, covering various community interests as they
Introducing Oregon State University SSDP
Written by Hunter Cram ’20, OSU SSDP Chapter Leader How did you hear about SSDP? I initially heard of SSDP when it was brought up during an interview in an episode of Professor David Nutt’s Drug Science podcast! Why did you want to get involved/what made you decide to start a chapter? I met a previous SSDP member through a
Introducing Webster University SSDP
Written by Dennis Caus ’21, Webster University SSDP Chapter LeaderHow did you hear about SSDP? I was going through MAPS’ website looking at information for students that are interested in getting into psychedelic/drug research in the future. I found an article that mentioned setting up a chapter of SSDP while in undergrad, so I found the website and began researching
February 2021 Report Card
This month, we announced the hiring of our new Executive Director, Jason Ortiz ‘08! In addition to being a longstanding alumnus of our network, Jason has been on the frontlines of the cannabis equity movement and has led over a dozen races for elected office as campaign manager and political consultant, bringing significant experience to the youth movement to end
Interview with Jake Hadamik ’20, SSDP Ambassador
SSDP is revamping our Ambassadorship program to better integrate SSDPers outside of the traditional chapter structure into our network! If you would like to get involved as an SSDP Ambassador for your community, email outreach@ssdp.org. How did you hear about SSDP? I heard about SSDP in high school around 2006-2010 when I was beginning to look into mental health and
SSDP’s STEM in Congress List Has Launched
Edited by SSDP’s Scientific Research Issue Group Scientific and research-oriented approaches to drug policy in the United States have been historically lacking. The narratives around drugs and drug policy, especially in the 20th century, were heavily and almost exclusively dominated by police, border control, and politicians looking for punitive approaches to issues of public health, freedom, and human rights. Fortunately,
U.S. Members – Take Our Limited Drug Decriminalization Policy Position Survey
SSDP’s U.S. Policy Council is accepting feedback from our membership regarding our U.S. policy position on limited drug decriminalization measures, such as psilocybin decriminalization or ‘Decriminalize Nature’ campaigns. These measures range from decriminalizing certain plant-based psychedelics to making certain plant-based psychedelics lowest law enforcement priorities. Currently, “SSDP does not prioritize a strategy to decriminalize, legalize, or regulate currently illegal drugs
Introducing Our New Federal Policy Liaison!
We are excited to announce that Sarah Noon ‘18, who joined the leadership team of our U.S. Policy Council in December, is our new U.S. Federal Policy Liaison! Sarah will be primarily responsible for assisting the development and implementation of SSDP’s United States federal legislative strategies and co-facilitating our United States Policy Council.Sarah recently graduated from Oakland Community College, where
