For more information contact:

Emergencymmjinsf@gmail.com

(415) 240-5247

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, May 7, 2012. On May 2, 2012, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi released a statement in reaction to a petition signed by thousands of San Francisco voters in support of medical cannabis patient rights. http://pelosi.house.gov/news/press-releases/2012/05/pelosi-statement-on-recent-federal-government-actions-threatening-safe-access-to-medicinal-marijuana.shtml

“Representative Pelosi’s statement empowers the local patients’ social justice movement.,” said Shona Gochenaur, chair of the Patient Advocacy Committee of the San Francisco Medical Cannabis Task Force, the committee responsible for circulating and delivering the petition to Rep. Pelosi’s San Francisco office. “[Pelosi] made no bones that the Department of Justice is using resources to circumvent state law and that healthcare is a civil right,” added Gochenaur.

The bold petition asked the Congressional Representative to defend medical cannabis dispensaries, to advise President Obama about the federal crackdown, to call for an investigation into the legality of the dispensary closures, and to facilitate setting up an emergency medical cannabis distribution system.

The effort was the strategic work of the Patient Advocacy Committee of the San Francisco Medical Cannabis Task Force and was co-sponsored by the Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club. Several patients’ rights groups supported the rally, including San Francisco patients unions, Axis of Love SF, Hope.Net Patients Group, and Black and Brown Just Cannabis Policy. Patients’ rights leaders, Elise Cleveland, Gregory Leddbetter and Andrea Allen presented the thousands of voter signatures to the Representative’s office.

“We felt that Representative Pelosi would stay true to her commitments to patient rights and carry that message in a swift manner to the national level,” said Gochenaur.

Link to video of the action: http://youtu.be/oG3B7EFJLBs

*** Some accurate news articles:

http://reason.com/blog/2012/05/03/nancy-pelosi-defends-medical-marijuana-d

http://www.kushmagazine.com/news/2845-success-nancy-pelosi-condemns-federal-crackdown-on-marijuana-in-california

http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2012/05/nancy_pelosi_obama_medical_marijuana.php

http://www.ksee24.com/news/local/Pelosi-Questions-Obama-Marijuana-Policy-150300535.html

For more information contact:

Emergencymmjinsf@gmail.com

(415) 240-5247

Link to petition: http://www.change.org/petitions/representative-nancy-pelosi-oppose-the-raids-against-medical-cannabis-facilities

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*** The Patient Advocacy Committee of the San Francisco Task Force and the Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club coordinated the signature drive. Axis of Love SF and Patient Advocacy Network co-sponsored the petition delivery event with the above-mentioned groups. The organizations involved with this effort wish to be clear with the media about who coordinated the effort as another organization has been actively taking credit in the media for the efforts of the disabled patients in San Francisco who made this happen.

http://www.opposingviews.com/i/politics/2012-election/nancy-pelosi-condemns-obama-medical-marijuana-attacks