Fellow Drug Policy Reformers:
I have asked Mike Gray to post on ARO this message from me to my reform colleagues throughout the world concerning my support of Proposition 19.
Again and again I underestimated what California reformers would be able to accomplish. I sat docilely with fingers crossed while they repeatedly carried the ball across the goal lines.
Clearly Richard Lee has seized leadership and launched us in what history might call “the final battle.” Many of us advised waiting until the presidential year of 2012. But Richard sensed the time has come and put himself and his wealth fully behind the effort.
It doesn’t matter how we got here. After decades of efforts which started in the 1980s with Arnold Trebach and Kevin Zeese fanning the ember of reform when such sentiments were considered signs of lunacy, we now have the opportunity to triumph. As goes California, goes most of the nation! In my opinion, and I understand that others whom I admire reason otherwise, we must not turn our backs now on our refrom and harm reduction movements’ ultimate effort.
We don’t have to win in 2010. But we must make a good showing. If we don’t all pull our oars and we take a shellacking, the movement will pay a high price for years to come.
So once more I don my reformer’s garb and urge that we pull together – I mean each and every individual and reform and harm reduction organization – and throw our unqualified support behind Proposition 19. No more excuses; just hard work!
These are difficult times and there are many mouths to feed, but I am contributing $10,000 to the effort, although I wish that circumstances permitted me to do much more as I have in the past. I encourage everyone else to make their own contribution, be it with their time, energy and, where possible, money.
Now is the moment; let’s seize it!
Robert Field
Robert Field is an esteemed leader of the drug reform movement and Board Member for Common Sense for Drug Policy. Below is information on his background and work:
Graduate of University of California – Berkeley, BA ’59 with major in economics after two years at Oberlin College and a semester at the National University of Mexico.
Semi-retired builder, owner and operator of apartment complexes and hotels( www.TheManorGroup.com). Assists son Richard who develops real estate and planned communities in Eastern Europe.
Executive producer for award winning motion pictures “Liquid Sky” (1983) and “Diamond Men” (2001), the documentary “Stalin’s Wife” (2005), and the soon to be released motion picture “Perestroika.”
Finance chairman of Arlen Specter’s 1980 state wide senatorial campaign and campaign manager of Luzerne County referendum campaign – both successful. Co-founder with Melvin R. Allen of Project Forward Leap, a seventeen year program for providing five weeks of educational overnight summer camp annually to about 300 inner city youngsters of academic promise.
Founder of Central Pennsylvania Syringe Exchange.
Co-founder with Kevin B. Zeese and Melvin R. Allen of Common Sense for Drug Policy (www.csdp.org).
Cosponsor (2002 – 2005) of a state and federally approved prototype methadone program permitting local prescription fulfillment and medical care for stable clients while patients remain under aegis of a regional methadone clinic.
Publisher of NewsLanc.com.
Committed to the concept that an accurately informed public will make sound policy decisions over the long run.
CW: Let;s give it up for another rational and well-thought statement by one of the reform community leaders on the sensibility of passing Prop. 19.