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Ben & Jerry’s and Advocacy Groups Launch Campaigns to Demand MarijuanaClemency from Biden and Governors

Three new campaigns, led by advocacy organizations and the ice-cream company Ben and Jerry’s, urge governors and presidents to grant clemency for people who are still incarcerated or have criminal records over marijuana.

Ben and Jerry’s and the ACLU are working together on one of these initiatives. They ask people to send pre-written letters to their Governors urging them to grant state-level relief for those who have been criminalized due to cannabis.

The campaign, which is tied to the unofficial holiday of marijuana 4/20, aims to bring attention to thousands of people still incarcerated or facing the collateral consequences of previous convictions due to marijuana, at a time where more and more states have legalized it.

The draft Letter states: “I am reaching out to you as a constituent to urge you use your power to clemency and pardon those who have been convicted of marijuana possession under the laws of our state if you haven’t already.” Even if you don’t have the sole authority to grant clemency in our state, your influence is very powerful to ensure that pardons are granted. Please act today.”

It says: “By leveraging clemency to help the many people in our state who have been impacted by the historically discriminatory and strict marijuana policies in the past, you can correct racial injustices and reduce systemic injustices in our criminal justice system.”

In the letter, it is noted that Joe Biden pardoned a large number of people last year who had committed federal marijuana possession crimes. The president urged state governors to offer similar relief, as most cannabis cases are prosecuted at the state level.

In the months following Biden’s pardon, several governors have taken action to grant marijuana clemency.

The Last Prisoner Project launched on Monday a campaign called “The Pen to Right History” which urges presidents and governors to grant mercy to those who are still incarcerated for non-violent marijuana crimes.

Write to your governor if you have friends or family members who were criminalized for cannabis. Ask them to take the pen that was used collectively to write letters to loved ones in prison and to grant others relief.

LPP has released a video that features Richeda Ashmeade whose father received a 22-year sentence for a marijuana conviction. The video focuses on both the unfairness and collateral consequences of the sentence.

In a press statement, LPP Executive Director Sarah Gersten stated that “the vast majority of Americans are in favor of this initiative. Even as many states decriminalize marijuana possession and recognize the immorality in these sentences, tens and thousands of people remain behind bars.”

She said, “Freeing these people is not only morally right because it gives those who are unfairly imprisoned a second chance but also a practical one as it addresses the racism system that has led to many of these convictions.” “President Biden made a good step last year by pardoning federal convictions, but that’s only a first step. It is time for our President and all of the governors to end this cruel, family-destroying scourge.

A separate campaign on which LPP and the Cannabis Voters Project are collaborating is , encouraging to urge their Governors to take action in order to release marijuana prisoners.

Celebrities like Susana Saandon, Chelsea Handler Ilana Glaser, Daveed Diggs, and Montel William are supporting the effort.

A coalition of 85 civil right and drug policy reform organizations sent a letter to Biden on Thursday using the unofficial cannabis holiday 4/20 to encourage the administration to deschedule marijuana, and support comprehensive legalization laws.


Politicians And Government Agencies Mark 4/20 As Marijuana Legalization Movement Expands

The post Ben & Jerry’s and Advocacy Groups Launch Advocacy Campaigns to Demand Marijuana Clemency from Biden And Governors first appeared on Marijuana Moment.

Kyle Jaeger
Author: Kyle Jaeger

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