Wisconsin Green Party
wisconsingreenparty.org
October 10, 2005
Originally released October 05
Contacts:
Arif Khan, Chair, Libertarian Party of Wisconsin,
715-497-9800 five4two6@gmail.com
Rolf Lindgren, Press Secretary
608-279-5889 rolfusaugustusadolphus@yahoo.com
Jill Bussiere, Co-Chair, Wisconsin Green Party
920-388-0529, cell 920-255-2175 jdt@wisconsingreenparty.org
Libertarians and Greens Support Underheim's
Medical Marijuana Bill Today the Wisconsin Green Party and the
Libertarian Party of Wisconsin stated their support for Representative
Underheim's bill on medical marijuana.
A bi-partisan group of Representatives has
introduced a bill in the State assembly, which would protect people
with cancer, multiple sclerosis, and other serious illnesses from
criminal penalties for using medical marijuana with their physicians'
recommendations. Representative Underheim was joined by a bipartisan
coalition of 15 cosponsors who have taken a stand for medical
marijuana patients in Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin Green Party and the Libertarian
Party of Wisconsin have long been supporters of making medical
marijuana legally available to patients.
"Medical marijuana isn't a partisan issue -
it's an issue that speaks to us all," said Jill Bussiere,
Co-Chair of the Wisconsin Green Party. "Any of us who have or
will have cancer, or who know family members or friends that have or
will have cancer, will benefit from this bill. Medical marijuana
provides relief to thousands of patients with cancer and a variety of
other ailments. The Wisconsin Green Party joins Libertarians,
Republicans, and Democrats and Independents in supporting legislation
that will make this drug legally available to those patients who can
benefit from it."
Arif Khan, Chair of the Libertarian Party of
Wisconsin, noted that politicians seem far behind the voters on this
issue. "Large majorities in a recent poll support medical
marijuana use across all demographic groups, ages, and political
persuasions. Will the politicians listen to their constituents or the
big pharmaceutical companies and their lobbyists?" asked Khan.
With organizations like the Wisconsin Nurses
Association and the Wisconsin Public Health Association taking
favorable positions on medical marijuana, and with massive public
support, the Greens and Libertarians are hopeful that seriously ill
Wisconsinites will soon be able to receive the compassionate care that
they deserve.
Other medical organizations that have endorsed
medical access to Marijuana include: the Institute of Medicine, the
American Academy of Family Physicians; American Bar Association;
American Public Health Association; American Society of Addiction
Medicine; AIDS Action Council; Consumer Reports Magazine; Kaiser
Permanente; Lymphoma Foundation of America; National Association of
Attorneys General; National Association of People with AIDS; National
Nurses Society on Addictions; New England Journal of Medicine.
Religious organizations in support include the
United Methodist Church, Episcopal Church, Unitarian Universalist
Association, Union for Reform Judaism, United Church of Christ, and
the Progressive National Baptist Convention.
A few of the editorial boards that have endorsed
medical access to marijuana include: Boston Globe; Chicago Tribune;
Miami Herald; New York Times; Orange County Register; USA Today, and
the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Many organizations have favorable positions (e.g.,
unimpeded research) on medical marijuana. These groups include: The
Institute of Medicine, The American Cancer Society; American Medical
Association; Federation of American Scientists; and the National
Academy of Sciences.
For more information about the Libertarian Party
of Wisconsin visit
www.lpwi.org
For more information about the Wisconsin Green
Party visit
www.wisconsingreenparty.org
