GROUP SUPPORTING MEDICAL MARIJUANA SEEKING COMMITMENTS

WEST FORK -- Members of a group seeking to legalize the medical use of
marijuana by people suffering the severe, chronic pain of cancer or
other diseases will soon be making some phone calls all around the
state and, in the process, moving toward a decision to be made by the
group this year, said Denele Campbell, executive director of Arkansans
for Reform of Drug Policy in Arkansas, as well as executive director
of the Arkansas Alliance for Medical Marijuana. "We're in the process
of making telephone calls to hundreds of supporters across the state
to see if we can get a commitment from people to contact their
legislators. If people are not going to contact their legislators and
ask them to support a bill, then we're not going to push for a bill.
It can't come from us. It has to come from the people. The primary
objective is to see if they're willing to contact their elected
representatives in the state of Arkansas and federally. You know, the
federal government could save us all a whole lot of trouble and take
some action on this issue," Campbell said. "We are in the process of
doing that. It's probably going to take us a couple of months, with
our team of volunteers, to make all these phone calls, but that's what
we're working on. What we're asking people is, No. 1, will you call
your legislators? And then, No. 2, will people work in teams in your
part of the state to turn out other people and generate phone calls
(to lawmakers)?" she said.

Between legislative sessions, lawmakers are studying the issue and
whether to try to legalize use of marijuana by patients, Campbell
said. A Nov. 17 hearing of the state House and Senate Public Health
Committee featured testimony by a physician familiar with California's
medical marijuana law and featured some good questions from lawmakers,
she said.

Furthermore, polls suggest that about two-thirds of respondents favor
making it legal for people with cancer or other illnesses to use
marijuana for pain relief, she said.

Still, while many Arkansans apparently support the idea, getting them
to contact their legislators and urge passage of a change in Arkansas
law is something else again, Campbell said.

Lawmakers who don't hear from their constituents won't support a new
law, she said.

The group's other mission is to educate citizens about the issue,
Campbell said.