Getting Active: What Can I Do?

Get educated -- visit the Common Sense for Drug Policy site at http://www.csdp.org/, Drug War Facts at http://www.drugwarfacts.org/, the MAP-DrugSense News archive at http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/, and the Online Drug Library at http://www.druglibrary.org/.
Stay informed via e-newsletter -- sign up through DrugSense at www.DrugSense.org; the Drug Reform Coordination Network at www.drcnet.org; and the Drug Policy Alliance at www.drugpolicy.org, among others. There are also local sources available. A meta-list of reform organizations, including several state drug policy forums, is available at http://www.csdp.org/links.htm .
Find out which reform organizations are working on issues about which you care most -- use the form at http://www.csdp.org/active.htm to get in contact with them. Find where you can most effectively spend some time and effort and do it. There is also a meta-list of reform organizations available at http://www.csdp.org/links.htm .
Get Active on reform issues. We have a number of materials available online to help, including:
- Transform Drug Policy Foundation's "Tools for the Debate"
  This booklet by the UK reform group Transform "is a guide to making the case for drug policy reform. It is designed to: reframe the debate, moving it beyond stale ideological arguments into substantive, rational engagement; and provide the language and analysis to challenge the prohibitionist status quo, and to make the case for evidenced based alternatives."
- Getting Started, by Denele Campbell, Alliance for Reform of Drug Policy in Arkansas
- New -- 10 Steps to Getting Press: A tip sheet by Tony Newman and Shayna Samuels, Drug Policy Alliance
- Tips On Writing Letters To The Editor, by Richard Lake, MAPINC
- Considerations When Forming A Nonprofit, by Suzy Wills, Drug Policy Forum of Texas
- Twelve Rules of Fundraising
- Building A Speakers Bureau, by Mike Smithson, ReconsiDer Forum on Drug Policy
- Legislative Strategies & Coalition Building, by Kevin Zeese, Common Sense for Drug Policy
- Checklist for Successful Event Organizing, by Robert E. Field, Co-Chair, Common Sense for Drug Policy
Americans for Safe Access have an Organizing Manual on their website. Also, the November Coalition website has a lot of great materials in their online Guide to Community Activism.
Know who your politicians are, their email addresses and phone numbers. Write to them, call them as often as needed. Remember, federal officials don't read your mail, their aides do. Also with federal officials contact them in their district home office as well as their DC office. Whenever your elected official speaks publicly attend and ask reform questions. Use zingy one liners, plant ideas into the heads of the aides and make them think.
Meet with your state representative and state senator. Except when the legislature is in session, it is not difficult to schedule a 15-30 minute meeting. Even if your representative is a die-hard drug warrior, meet with him/her and get how you feel off your chest. Medical marijuana is a great nail to use and drive it with the hammer that millions of people don't have health insurance, thus they cannot afford to go to the pharmacy. For more information on working with legislators, download this piece by CSDP President Kevin Zeese, "Legislative Strategies & Coalition Building.
Inform your clergy, urge them to devote a sermon to drug use/abuse and the need to end the war on drugs.
Be alert for local or regional community events. You can set up a booth and attract attention and support. CSDP maintains a calendar of upcoming conferences at http://www.csdp.org/news/news/conferences.htm . Also be sure to check out the Drug Policy Alliance event calendar for more info.
Write letters to the editor. Download this excellent "how-to" piece by Richard Lake, Editor at MAPINC, "Tips On Writing Letters To The Editor". Send them to your local paper, national magazines, the student paper of your alma mater, etc. Even if not published, the editors will continue to get a sense of what is important to people. If someone outside the organization writes a good letter, find out their phone number, call them and let them know we exist and they can join. Get weekly focus alerts on media targets at www.drugsense.org.
Speak up against prohibition/war on drugs. When discussing other social problems show how they are connected to our failed drug policy -- e.g., no money for education – the US spends more on prison building than on college building, and hires more prison guards than teachers.
For those who wish to wear their message and engage the public, a custom t-shirt can be made by any custom shirt shop. Ask Howard Wooldridge at scout201@charter.net for details.
Talk Radio -- know which stations have talk shows, and share that information with fellow reformers in your area. Let everyone know when the topic of drugs is coming up so they can call in also. Think of and distribute great one-liners and sound bites for talk shows, i.e.
A. Prohibition guarantees the existence of drug dealers.
B. Prohibition hasn't worked since Adam & Eve bit on the apple.
C. Studies show that every drug dealer arrested, shot or killed has been quickly replaced. How can arresting more drug dealers help keep drug dealers and drugs away from my kids?
Write to the columnists of your local paper. Many now include their email addresses under their picture or somewhere in the paper. Urge them to do a piece on Prohibition, tying it to their area of expertise.
Buy an extra copy of an especially good reform book and donate it to a local public, school or church library. If the school or library refuses to accept it, alert the media. For a list of great books on drug policy reform, check out CSDP's Recommended Reading List.
Start a local reform group, work with others of a like mind and coordinate your efforts. Download some the materials listed above, look over the websites, and dive in. If you want to learn more, contact us and we’ll help: info@csdp.org.

Getting Active

What Can I Do?

Get Informed -- Get Motivated -- Get Active