Nov-L: Urgent! Action Now! (fwd)

[Alif The Terrible]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 2002 14:03:42 -0700
From: Nora Callahan <nora at november.org>
To: november-l at november.org
Subject: Nov-L: Urgent! Action Now!

For those of  you not on a large number of listservs, here is a
dangerous new bill.

Steve Gotzler, National Lawyers Guild and November Coalition

Subject: [asa] Stop Senate attacks on marijuana events

======================================================================

PROPOSED LAW COULD SUBJECT YOU TO 20 YEARS IN PRISON
Stop the Senate From Banning Marijuana Rallies and Other Events

Take Action at: http://ga1.org/campaign/rave
[Please direct any questions to bpiper at drugpolicy.org.]
The Senate is poised to pass legislation that would give federal
prosecutors new powers to shut down hemp festivals, marijuana rallies
and other events and punish business owners and activists for hosting
or promoting them. The proposed law would also potentially subject
people to enormous federal sentences if some of their guests smoked
marijuana at their party or barbecue. It would also effectively make
it a federal crime to rent property to medical marijuana patients and
their caregivers.

The bill, known as the Reducing American's Vulnerability to Ecstasy
Act (RAVE Act), was just introduced in the Senate on June 18th and has
already passed the Senate Judiciary Committee. It is moving VERY
rapidly and could be passed by the Senate as early as this week. While
it purports to be aimed at ecstasy and other club drugs, it gives the
federal government enormous power to fine and imprison supporters of
marijuana legalization, even if they've never smoked marijuana.

It is urgent that you take action today!

ACTIONS TO TAKE

**  Fax your Senators today. Go to http://ga1.org/campaign/rave
    to find out more.

**  Forward this alert to your friends, family, and co-workers.

**  After you fax your Senators, please follow it up with phone calls.
    Tell them you just faxed them a letter in opposition to S. 2633,
    the Reducing American's Vulnerability to Ecstasy Act. Tell them
    that innocent business owners shouldn't be punished for the crimes
    of their customers. Tell them this bill has dangerous anti-civil
    liberties provisions that they need to be aware of, and this bill
    deserves serious debate.

You can contact your Senators through the Capitol Switchboard at
202-224-3121. To find out who your Senators are go to:
http://www.senate.gov/senators/senator_by_state.cfm

MORE INFORMATION

The Senate is considering legislation that would give federal
prosecutors new powers to shut down raves, marijuana rallies and other
events they don't like and punish businessmen and women for hosting or
promoting them. The bill (S. 2633), also known as the Reducing
American's Vulnerability to Ecstasy Act (RAVE Act), is moving very
rapidly and could be considered by the full Senate as early as this
week. (A similar bill is also pending in the House.)

S. 2633, sponsored by Senators Durbin (D-IL), Hatch (R-UT), Grassley
(R-IA) and Leahy (D-VT), expands the so-called "crack house statute"
to allow the federal government to fine or imprison businessmen and
women if customers sell or use drugs on their premises or at their
events. Property owners, promoters, and event coordinators could be
fined hundreds of thousands of dollars or face up to twenty years in
federal prison if they hold raves or other events on their property.
If the bill becomes law, property owners may be too afraid to rent or
lease their property to groups holding hemp festivals or putting on
all-night dance parties, effectively stifling free speech and banning
raves and other musical events.

The new law would also make it a federal crime to temporarily use a
place for the purpose of using any illegal drug. Thus, anyone who used
drugs in their own home or threw an event (such as a party or
barbecue) in which one or more of their guests used drugs could
potentially face a $250,000 fine and years in federal prison. The bill
also effectively makes it a federal crime to rent property to medical
marijuana patients and their caregivers, giving the federal government
a new weapon in its war on AIDS and cancer patients who use marijuana
to relieve their suffering.

Health advocates worry that the bill will endanger our nation's youth.
If enacted, licensed and law-abiding business owners may stop hosting
raves or other events that federal authorities don't like, out of fear
of massive fines and prison sentences. Thus, the law would drive raves
and other musical events further underground and away from public
health and safety regulations. It would also discourage business
owners from enacting smart harm-reduction measures to protect their
customers. By insinuating that selling bottled water and offering
"cool off" rooms is proof that owners and promoters know drug use is
occurring at their events, this bill may make business owners too
afraid to implement such harm-reduction measures, and the safety of
our kids will suffer.

The RAVE Act punishes businessmen and women for the crimes of their
customers and is unprecedented in U.S. history. The federal government
can't even keep drugs out of prisons, yet it seeks to punish business
owners for failing to keep people from carrying drugs onto their
premises. If this bill passes, federal authorities will have the
ability to scare business owners away from using or renting their
property for marijuana festivals, as well as any other "politically
incorrect" event.

For more information on this bill, go to http://thomas.loc.gov/ and
under "bill number" search for S2633.

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-- 

Nora Callahan
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