Dear A,
Joe Bokan A note from the editor_____________________________________________
Greetings Fellow Reformer-
I hope you’re doing well. I am, and I’m looking forward to the
holiday season- it’s coming up fast! But first, Election Day is upon
us, so get out there and VOTE!!! There are many important propositions,
initiatives and resolutions about drug policy and reform throughout the USA
this election year. There are also many other important measures regarding
your hometown’s transit, schools, public services and emergency
services. If you want to change the world and change the drug laws, it
starts with the simple act of casting your VOTE! I myself am a patriot, and
I believe most of you are as well. As patriots, it is our duty to vote.
Just as it is our duty to question our government about the misguided Drug
War. Till next month…
Peace and Love,
Joe Bokan
Mike Smithson
Speakers Bureau Update________________________________
The Fall
Classic…as the Colorado Rockies rampaged thru the National League
playoffs and the Boston Red Sox pressed on for an eventual World Series
title, I pondered the potential impact of these sporting events on our
presentations…but it didn’t seem to hamper them much, even when
we had presentations at Colorado University and Colorado State University (by
Tony Ryan) on nights of World
Series games. Good crowds at both: although our culture may be infatuated
with sports, it appears that we still want to work on public policy issues,
World Series or not. ~smile~
Ol’ Jack Cole sure doesn’t want to show his years: he went
on a few more trips this month, first to the Lone
Star State
to speak at the University of Texas,
and then off to Bangkok, Thailand, where LEAP was invited
to the Open Society Institute’s conference, "Policing
and Harm Reduction". 47 attendees from 13 countries, and more than
half of those people joined LEAP, showing that harm reducers DO want LEAP involved
in their efforts. While in Austin,
Jack was joined by speakers Dr. Michael
Gilbert and Russ Jones,
two central Texans who do a lot of presentations in the region. Jack’s
trip was sponsored by the Dean Jack Otis Social Policy Lecture Fund, and we
were impressed with the luncheon our hosts assembled. Guests included a local
DEA agent, the Travis County Sheriff and the Austin Police Chief.
Peter
Christ was invited to speak to several classes at Buffalo State
College and the University
of Buffalo. A day
before he left home to do the presentations, we received a call from Hilbert College, and they wanted to get in on
the trip, so at the last minute we were able to put Peter into two classes
over there, too. We received a nice honorarium, which helped cover the costs
for the trip.
New speaker Bill Weiland jumped into the fray with a presentation at America’s second-oldest college, the College of William & Mary. Shirin Wartime,
the Students for Sensible Drug Policy contact who arranged everything, wrote:
“…things went splendidly on Tuesday
night. Bill is a great speaker, full of energy and very engaging. I was
really happy with the turnout…probably the biggest crowed SSDP has ever
drawn. All in all, we had a great event and I feel like we reached a lot of
people. I saw a lot of new faces, which is good because we are trying to
reach out to a different segment of campus.” Lennice Werth,
a central Virginia
activist, also added: “Bill is a great speaker. His approach is
comfortable and friendly.”
On the same day that Bill was at William
and Mary, Earl Barnett spoke at Rhodes College
in Memphis.
Joey Miller, the student coordinator I worked with, arranged for a TV
interview and a couple of newspaper interviews. Up in Ontario, Jim Watkins spoke at a coffee house
series hosted by a group at William Laurier University, and there will be
much more happening in Canada soon; with Prime Minister Harper playing the
heavy, we’re getting plenty of requests for interviews and
presentations. Jerry Paradis
participated in an Oct 28th panel discussion, hosted by Libby
Davies, the Member of Parliament for Vancouver-East. Tony Smith and Jerry were interviewed
several times this month in conjunction with the Prime Minister’s new
policy plans.
Back in the States, Eric Sterling spoke at a Law Forum at George Washington
University in DC, Mike Jones did some more radio work in Taos, NM, and Howard Wooldridge made a trip west to Portland, OR
for the 25th Annual Conference of Mothers Against Misuse and
Abuse, getting plenty of media coverage. Matt
McCally also went to Portland
to speak to a Humanist Society meeting. Tim
Datig went to Pittsburgh
to exhibit for LEAP at the Annual Conference of the International County
Managers Association. Over 4000 attendees were there, and many had to
blink several times when they passed by our booth. Judge Jim Gray made another trip down to San Diego State
University, Tony Ryan told the Illinois Libertarians
why they should join LEAP at their annual conference, and…well, hey, I
gotta take a breath!
Our Volunteer
of the Month for October is Mary
Jane Borden, a long-time activist who resides in Cleveland, OH.
MJ answered our request for help, and traveled to Pittsburgh to assist Datig at the ICMA
conference. Conferencing is a major part of our overall effort to promote our
position to large groups of people at one time. And, as Mary Jane explained: “Participating with LEAP at the ICMA
conference gave me the opportunity to step out of my own comfort zone and
speak with scores of people for whom our drug policy reform ideas are uncommon.”
Thanks, MJ, for all that you do to help not just LEAP, but the whole reform
effort.
Moving into November, one might expect
our presentations to tail off because of the holidays. Not the case. Expect a
very busy month from LEAP before we head off to New Orleans for the Drug Policy Alliance
Conference in December.
We need
YOUR help to continue doing all that we do.
If you
aren’t already, please consider volunteering your time or donating to
LEAP. Together we can End Prohibition Now!
LEAP Links
LEAP
Speakers Blog, click here.
LEAP promotional DVD
LEAP website
Our host Drug Sense
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