Tax & Regulate Campaign Student Leadership Call: Minutes

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Most Important: Chapters should be in contact with one another. Utilzed the CA SSDP Google Group to facilitate discussion, share ideas etc... Stay in touch with Jon Perri and Evan Nison.

Ground team set up:
- larger chapters will be "volunteer coordinating centers" and be given Tax Cannabis volunteers in their local area to coordinate.
- smaller chapters will be directed to a local "volunteer coordinating center" to work with them as a sub branch.

How students can help during the school year:

* Educate your campus community with events
o Bringing speakers to campus from the campaign for informational presentations, forums and debates.
o Campaign is building a speakers bureau with list of the best speakers for this issue.
o Host discussion forums or "town hall" style events to inform people of the initiative
* Coalition building:
o Reach out to broader student community and other student clubs

* Bring resolutions to your local Government asking them to endorse the initiative
o Pros: Looks great if it passes
o Cons: Negative if it does not pass. This requires some lobbying of your student gov. reps and making sure you have a good shot of getting it passed before bringing it for a vote.
o More information and sample resolutions to come...

How students can help over the Summer:

* Tabling

o Register people to vote on campus (will be important throughout the school year as well)
+ CA voter registration forms can be downloaded here: https://www.sos.ca.gov/nvrc/fedform/App_PDF/english_blank.pdf
+ Vote by Mail will be important for college students. You can register them to vote and provide them with instructions on how to vote by mail. Guidelines/Forms for Vote by Mail:
+ http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/vote-by-mail/pdf/guide-to-vbm-app-drives-2010.pdf
http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/vote-by-mail/pdf/fill-in-vote-by-mail-app-instruct.pdf
o Handing out campaign materials.
+ Does the campaign have your mailing address for materials?
# Please email your mailing address to evan@taxcannabis.org

* Writing letters to the editor and opinion pieces to campus and local newspapers with supportive professors
o Ask your faculty advisors or other supportive faculty to write LTE's in support of the initiative: These are likely to get published and have a positive impact coming from a teacher.
o Tie in the educational budget crisis in letters.
o Sample LTE's coming soon.

* Online organizing
o Inviting friends to the Control & Tax Facebook page
+ http://www.facebook.com/taxcannabis
o Pledge to Vote and spread this link everywhere (twitter and facebook status updates especially)
+ http://www.taxcannabis.org/page/s/pledge
o Posting status updates about getting involved in the campaign and reminding people to Vote Yes
o Promote this student volunteer link: http://www.taxcannabis.org/page/s/studentvolunteer