GROUP WANTS SENSIBLE DRUG POLICY

Marijuana Awareness Month Declared For April On Campus

April is being called Marijuana Awareness Month by members of the Students
for a Sensible Drug Policy Group. This group's purpose is to educate people
about the war on drugs and involve the youth in the political process.

Every Wednesday of this month, students from the group will be presenting a
historical look at the war on drugs and the prohibition of marijuana. Each
talk will cover a specific time period and highlight such topics as the
money spent on the war on drugs and the benefits of marijuana use. The
students from the group will speak at 6 p.m. in the Crabbe Library, Room 108.

Marijuana Awareness Day (MAD) will be from 4-10 p.m. April 21 in the
Ravine. The event will hold informational booths on marijuana as well as
animal welfare and environmental issues. There will be several local bands
including Infected, Fayed and Deep 13, who will perform during the night as
well as guest speakers.

David Short, president of Students for Sensible Drug Policy Group, will
share the positive effects of marijuana use and reasons why it should be
legalized. Also, Libertarian Party Candidate, Gatewood Galbraith will speak
as a marijuana activist.

The purpose of this event is to "educate people on marijuana and its good
uses," said Rebecca Lincoln, member of Students for a Sensible Drug Policy.
She also encouraged people to come out and see what the group is all about.
"Many people don't understand or respect what we do."

Students for a Sensible Drug Policy started in November and has more than
20 members. Their goal is to lower laws on drugs. They work on the
university level as part of more than 150 national chapters. The members
focus on the positive effects of marijuana such as reducing tumors,
stopping asthma attacks and reducing the Greenhouse Effect according to Short.

The group holds meetings each Tuesday in Moore 111 at 5 p.m. In addition to
planning these events during their meetings, they show educational movies
and answer questions about the myths associated with marijuana's negative
effects.

Students for a Sensible Drug Policy are also involved in the
Million-Marijuana March in Lexington on May 3 and they are participating in
the 5K Earth Day Run on April 12.