San Diego ASA

Medical cannabis activists in San Diego and San Francisco are getting creative to get their messages out this week. In San Diego, the local chapter of Americans for Safe Access (ASA) teamed up with Canvas for a Cause and the Yes Men to stage a clever hoax using a satirical press release a web page to temporarily make some media think that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) was about to attack ordinary pharmacies with raids and civil asset forfeiture proceedings. The first-amendment action was designed to show the absurdity of the current federal crackdown on medical cannabis patients’ cooperatives and collectives. The action drew the ire of US Attorney Laura Duffy, but generated some media buzz and had a lot of people talking about medical cannabis yesterday.

Today, ASA members and allies in San Francisco will host a mock funeral procession to dramatize the closure of Vapor Room, one of the cities venerable medical cannabis collectives. The procession will march from the collective to City Hall and feature all the regalia of a funeral parade. Activists will hold a press conference at City Hall to decry the federal intimidation of property owners. The DOJ has sent letters threatening prosecution and civil asset forfeiture proceedings against property owners who rent to medical cannabis tenants.

It is hard to get the media’s attention so that you can tell your story to the public. ASA activists and their friends in San Diego and Sacramento are to be commended for thinking outside the box to get their messages out. Read more about ASA and join on the website.