Be Interactive

Written by Erica Darragh ‘14, member of the SSDP Board of Directors

Last weekend, Students for Sensible Drug Policy tabled at Bassnectar’s second annual fundraiser for his social change nonprofit, Be Interactive. We could not have hoped for a better night. Our action inventory included:

• 60 engagements to our action center for federal cannabis policy reform – participate in this action by texting “SSDP” to 52886!
• 40 engagements for the state-level initiative and local-level advocacy on behalf of Tennessee Recovery Alliance
• $95 raised
• 30 People for Sensible Drug Culture signups
• 3 SSDP signups

This iteration of Bassnectar x SSDP was particularly effective due to our massive tabling space, which we maximized by having an SSDP booth right next to the booth occupied by our friends from DanceSafe!

DanceSafe’s brand recognition in the live music community attracted a lot of people who did not recognize SSDP but were interested in ending the War on Drugs. Because Be Interactive also served as the first event for People for Sensible Drug Culture, we had a signup form that our non-student peers felt invited to join. This highly effective collaboration was an encouraging experience as PSDC prepares for a formal relationship with DanceSafe.

We also came home with a plan to propose a drug policy-relevant grant theme to Be Interactive over the summer. Once that theme is adopted by the organization, we would be able to apply for it. Full details about this plan will be available at the beginning of August.

Every time I think about where we’ve been, where we are, and where we are going, I literally get chills. SSDP and DanceSafe, side by side, are an unstoppable force to end drug prohibition, and activation of our non-student peers is a potentially game-changing development. 

Millennials have been the largest voting block since 2016, and in 2018 our voting participation rates outpaced Boomers for the first time ever. Centering drug policy in the minds of our peers (not just the candidates!) may prove to be a highly effective element of our 2020 strategy.

We can’t wait to see everyone at Bass Center. Stay tuned <3

For more information about how to get involved in our efforts with BeInteractive, email hannah@ssdp.org!