Join NORML at the National Cannabis Festival in DC

This Saturday, August 28th, you can join the leaders of Delaware NORML, Maryland NORML, Virginia NORML, and multiple senior members of National NORML at the National Cannabis Festival in Washington, DC.

Tickets and more information are available here. **Please note that the festival requires proof of a COVID vaccination or a negative COVID test within the previous 3 days.**

The musical lineup is headlined by Method Man and Redman, and includes Young M.A, Backyard Band, Antibalas, The Archives, Lee, Blackwood & Graham, and DJ Farrah Flosscett.

NORML leaders will be hosting or participating in multiple panels, including:

2:45 pm: Cannabis Momentum in the Mid-Atlantic in the Education Pavillion with:

Jenn Michelle Pedini, Development Director, NORML
Laura Sharer, Executive Director, Delaware NORML
Losia Nyankale, Executive Director, Maryland NORML
Moderated by: Luke Jones, Political Director, Maryland NORML

Navigate the roads to reform through the Mid-Atlantic region with leading cannabis policy experts. They’ll deliver legislative updates and share how you can actively engage in the process of changing marijuana laws in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia.

4:45 pm: Tell Me YOUR Marijuana Criminalization Story in the Culture Pavillion with:

Harry Kelso, Roanoke, Virginia
Jessica Andreavich, Delaware
Moderated By: Tamara Netzel, Founder, Cruel Consequences and Virginia NORML Board Member

Outrageously long prison sentences for marijuana are only part of the story. The human costs of marijuana prohibition include people serving decades in a prison cell as well as the collateral consequences of denied employment, college loans, housing, and child custody for even the smallest possession charge. These are the experiences of thousands of people in the US today, despite widespread exposure to these fundamental injustices. Panelists are individuals featured in Cruel Consequences: Portraits of Misguided Law, a 501c3 nonprofit cannabis convict portrait exhibit – cruelconsequences.org. Selected audience members will get a chance to join in the storytelling by sharing their own marijuana criminalization stories. Join us to listen to the reasons marijuana prohibition must end.

5:00 pm: The March Towards Federal Legalization: How and MORE! in the Education Pavillion with:

Justin Strekal, Political Director, NORML
Maritza Perez, Drug Policy Alliance
Tyler McFadden, North Star Liberty Group

In December of 2020, the House of Representatives passed the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement Act, better known as the MORE Act, to end federal marijuana prohibition and criminalization. Unfortunately, the Senate refused to consider the bill before the end of the legislative session, effectively killing the bill for the year. Now the MORE Act has been reintroduced in the House and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has teamed up with Senators Cory Booker and Ron Wyden to introduce their own comprehensive draft proposal entitled the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act which is grounded in justice reform and inclusive of a federal regulatory system and currently receiving public comment. Come and hear from key advocates in the center of both of these endeavors and discuss the future of federal cannabis policy reform.

As our friends at NCF say: “We’ed love to see you there!”

Tickets and more information are available here.