Tag: students for sensible drug policy
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
SSDP African Orientation Training: Session Results and Feedback
In early December, the brand new SSDP Africa Orientation Training was launched, with the 5 well-prepared, eager, and motivated facilitators ready to train the first batch of participants and begin the task of certifying our members. Read about who they are and the creation of this training here. The first round of this training saw 12 participants in attendance of
Psychedelic Exceptionalism vs. Decrim All
Written by Josh McMillin ‘20, Kat Ebert ‘18Edited by Abhi Dewan ‘18, Luis Montoya ‘16 After the 2020 election season, many of us were delighted to see that several US states passed historical initiatives for the progress of drug reform. Not long after, the UN rescheduled marijuana and the MORE act passed the house. The War on Drugs is steadily
Introducing University of Michigan SSDP!
Written by Connor Flanigan ’20, UMich SSDP Chapter Leader How did you hear about SSDP? Was looking for ways to get involved with positive psychedelic legislation, and google did the rest. Why did you want to get involved/what made you decide to start a chapter? I wanted to help organize my local community in the ongoing efforts around drug policy.
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
Introducing California State University Fullerton
Written by Michael Baum ‘20, Chapter Leader of California State University Fullerton How did you hear about SSDP? I heard about SSDP when looking through the MAPS website. Why did you want to get involved/what made you decide to start a chapter? I wanted to get involved because I know a lot of people are harmed by the drug policies
Opinion Piece: After 50 Years of Failure, It’s Time to Rethink the Controlled Substances Act
Written by Trey Brasher ’19 and Elijah Zorro Ullman ‘15, SSDP Scientific Policy Council members (Written to publish on October 27th, 2020 for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) 50 years ago today, on Oct 27th, 1970, the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) was signed into law. Solidifying treatment of drugs as a criminal issue rather than a medical or societal one, the
Now Available: Strategy Summit Session Recordings
Did you LOVE SSDP’s first-ever virtual Strategy Summit? Have you missed a few sessions? You can now watch all of the public sessions on SSDP’s 2020 Strategy Summit website. Over the last month, SSDPers held discussions on various important topics and issues to provide insight towards the development of a multi-year strategy that will guide the organization to continued success
New Member Added to SSDP’s U.S. Policy Council Leadership Team
On December 1st, 2020, SSDP’s U.S. Policy Council Tactical Team voted to add Sarah Noon ‘18 as a member of our leadership team. Sarah will be the point person for our Campus Change, Cannabis, and Scientific Research Issue Groups. Sarah Noon recently graduated from Oakland Community College, where she was the president and founder of OCC’s Students for Sensible Drug
SSDP Is Hiring A U.S. Federal Policy Liaison!
Have you ever wanted to work for Students for Sensible Drug Policy? We’re hiring a U.S. Federal Policy Liaison! Working for SSDP is a great opportunity to serve our network of students and young people who are leading the charge to end the disastrous War on Drugs and heal from the harms of drug prohibition. SSDP is overseen by our
Action Alert: Start Making Calls for Georgia Voter Registration and GOTV!
Students for Sensible Drug Policy is encouraging all of our U.S. members, alumni, and supporters to start making calls and get out the vote for Georgia’s special election on January 5th. Drug policy reform and the progress we have made this year is on the line this run-off election. The MORE Act, which just passed the House of Representatives on
Another Historic Victory: The MORE Act Has Passed in the House of Representatives
In a historic victory for drug policy reform and a historic blow to marijuana prohibition in the United States, the MORE Act has passed in the House of Representatives. From the passing of the Controlled Substances Act and its implementation in 1971 to now, hundreds of thousands of people have been arrested for marijuana possession. It’s truly hard to overstate the
Action Alert: Congress To Vote On Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition This Week
Later this week, the U.S. House of Representatives will vote on the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act, H.R. 3884. This will mark the first time that Congress vote on the legal status of marijuana since the passage of the Controlled Substances Act a half-century ago. If you’re reading this email, you have probably already taken action to get
Introducing Our SSDP Africa Orientation Training
Written by Ruby Rose Lawlor ‘19, SSDP Global Programs Intern In August this year, we began the process of creating this new member training specific to the SSDP African Network to finally meet the requests and needs of our members in this region. SSDP’s African Network is a robust, inspiring, and incredibly active community that have made changes across the
What It Means For Us: 2020 U.S. General Election
Written by Abhi Dewan ‘19, U.S. Federal Policy Liaison November 3rd, 2020 was a date many of us were anxiously awaiting. Though it wasn’t until November 7th that we got the complete picture, on the 3rd we knew we’d won. Drug policy reform ballots across the nation toppled the old dogmas surrounding drug use. Oregon became the inaugural state to
Drug Policy Reform Won The Election
Last night, drug policy reform was the clear winner in the United States 2020 election. Students for Sensible Drug Policy was honored to work on seven winning statewide initiatives this year and we congratulate the successful campaigns on this stunning victory for drug policy reform. In an unprecedented move, Oregon voters turned out to overwhelmingly support the decriminalization of all
Introducing University of Washington SSDP
Written by Lukas Metzner ‘19, University of Washington SSDP Chapter Leader How did you hear about SSDP? In sophomore year, my partner, who goes to another school, told me about an awesome club she joined that worked on drug policy and education. The work they were doing and the community they were building sounded awesome, so I wanted to get
Introducing UConn Hartford SSDP
Written by Sam Evans ‘20, UConn Hartford SSDP Chapter LeaderHow did you hear about SSDP? I first heard about SSDP through an event that Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) held several years back and have also seen SSDP mentioned on maps.org.Why did you want to get involved/what made you decide to start a chapter? I wanted to get involved and establish
Start Making Calls for Sensible Drug Policy
Drug decriminalization and psilocybin therapy are on the ballot for the first time ever in a U.S. state, making Election 2020 unprecedented for drug policy reform. With ballot measures on medical and adult-use cannabis legalization, psilocybin therapy, low-level drug decriminalization, and expanded funding for harm reduction, treatment, and recovery services, our progress as a movement hinges on us activating voters
SSDP Network Surveys Are Due Today
Today is the last day to fill out our Member and Supporter Surveys! We have all experienced a year of change that has radically altered our personal lives and our advocacy. We need your feedback to center the desires of our network and to maintain the resiliency of the youth drug policy reform movement. If you were involved in a
SSDP Network Survey Deadlines Have Been Extended
To allow more time for our members and supporters to make their voices heard in our network surveys, we have moved the deadline to complete the Membership and Supporter Surveys back to this Friday, October 23rd. Your understanding, experience, and opinions about SSDP are important to us and our members. We highly encourage you to share this with your fellow
Global Member Highlight: Arvy Kumar ’18
Written by Jacob Chagnon ’17 Jacob: For this week’s Member Highlight, we’re highlighting Aravind ‘Arvy’ Kumar ‘18, former chapter leader at NYU Abu Dhabi and contributing member to the International Organizing Committee. Arvy, my immediate successor at the NYU Abu Dhabi chapter and a dear friend, now lives and works full time in Abu Dhabi since his graduation. Given the
SSDP Country Highlight: Lebanon (Part 2)
This is the second part of our Global Country Highlight on Lebanon. If you have not seen the first part, please click here. Civil Society In my view, the NGOs working in Lebanon set a fantastic example for activists everywhere, covering key areas of policy change, network building, medical treatment, and harm reduction. Civil society’s interrelated web of activity demonstrates
