Denied college financial aid for one joint?

Since 2000, students with marijuana and other drug convictions have been denied
federal financial aid for college -- even if such convictions were in the past.

Please use MPP's easy online action center -- at
http://control.mpp.org/site/R?i=CZ2gULYnrF9ikyn6vAIIxQ.. -- to ask your three
members of Congress to repeal this bad law, as members of Congress will be voting on
this any week now!

This unfair and counterproductive policy is the result of a provision of the Higher
Education Act (HEA), which was slipped into the law without debate or a recorded
vote by a prohibitionist zealot, Congressman Mark Souder (R-Ind.), in 1998.

According to the U.S. Department of Education, this provision has harmed more than
200,000 students, particularly racial minorities, by denying them aid and in some
cases forcing them to drop out of school.

If you agree that forcing students out of school is a ridiculous response to
marijuana possession, please take a minute to ask Congress to pass the Removing
Impediments to Students' Education (RISE) Act. The bill, introduced by Congressman
Barney Frank (D-Mass.), would repeal the aid elimination penalty. Sen. Chris Dodd
(D-Conn.) has introduced a similar bill in the Senate, which would remove the
mandatory financial aid revocation and require a judge to decide if a student should
lose financial aid.

Please visit http://control.mpp.org/site/R?i=lr5NIL26CIFdtoaMPfCZag.. to use MPP's
easy online action center to tell your three members of Congress to support these
two bills today.

Sincerely,

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to
match the first $3.0 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2008.
This means that your donation today at
http://control.mpp.org/site/R?i=Fa_ZmBC86zIAm178B1kCsQ.. will be doubled.

P.P.S. You can opt out of receiving fundraising mentions in the e-mail alerts I send
you in 2008 by visiting http://control.mpp.org/site/R?i=K1gf8gcaoF7-Rs8L24650Q.. at
your convenience.

======================================================================

The Marijuana Policy Project hopes that each of the 180,000 subscribers on our
national e-mail list will make at least one financial donation to MPP's work in
2008. Please visit http://control.mpp.org/site/R?i=WW0xDzIkmiZPvzqibIyRQQ.. to
donate now.

MPP will be able to tackle all of the projects in its 2008 strategic plan ---
http://control.mpp.org/site/R?i=hqSwIzH_FtTlEFIl2z5d9A.. --- if you and other allies
are able to fund our work.

Raised in 2008: $971,438
Goal in 2008: $3,000,000

You are receiving this e-mail because you subscribed to MPP's e-mail alerts. E-mail
membership [at] mpp.org to update your contact information or change your alert settings.
To contact MPP, please visit
http://control.mpp.org/site/R?i=mcWo1bnMzs8VwkpTKYJC4Q.. or reply to this e-mail.
Our mailing address is MPP, P.O. Box 77492, Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. 20013.