Elvy Musikka | |
|---|---|
 Elvy Musikka at the 2018 Emerald Cup | |
| Born | August 10, 1939 |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Known for | Medical marijuana patients’ rights |
Elvy Musikka (born August 10, 1939) is an American cannabis rights activist.
Elvy Musikka | |
|---|---|
| Elvy Musikka at the 2018 Emerald Cup | |
| Born | August 10, 1939 |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Known for | Medical marijuana patients’ rights |
Elvy Musikka (born August 10, 1939) is an American cannabis rights activist.
Elvy Musikka is one of three surviving patients qualified to enroll in the Compassionate Investigational New Drug Program, getting marijuana from the federal government. [1] [2] [3]
Born in Columbia with congenital cataracts that severely limited her vision, Musikka underwent a series of surgeries both in her home country and in the US. Her condition was compounded by a diagnosis of glaucoma in the 1970s, after which a doctor advised her to try marijuana to lower her eye pressure and preserve what was left of her vision.
In 1988, Musikka was arrested for growing a few marijuana plants in her backyard in Hollywood, Florida. Facing a five-year jail sentence, she stood her ground and was defended by activist attorney Norm Kent at a trial where her doctor and activist Robert Randall, also a glaucoma sufferer, testified. The judge found her not guilty due to medical necessity. Shortly thereafter, Musikka was accepted into the federal IND (Investigational New Drug) program, which began to provide her monthly tins containing 300 joints grown at a government farm in Mississippi. [4] [5]
Musikka’s case earned international headlines and she soon was recruited to join Journeys for Justice and the Cannabis Action Network, appearing at pro-pot rallies across the country. She has also travelled internationally, appearing at events in Mexico, Colombia, Amsterdam, Australia, and Scandinavia.
Musikka was active in California campaigning for Proposition 215 in 1996 for medical marijuana patients’ rights, and also campaigned for reform measures in Oregon. She has worked with many of the key players in the marijuana reform movement, like Jack Herer, and attended and spoke at Seattle Hempfest, The High Times Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam, and the Million Marijuana March in New York City. She has won several awards for her activism.
Musikka has regularly appeared on TV news and has been interviewed by countless newspapers. At a time when possessing pot still meant arrest and jail, Musikka was uniquely able, and willing, to be open and honest about her marijuana use, since it was sanctioned by the federal government.
A powerful singer and musician who has always been at home behind a microphone, Musikka wrote and recorded many pro-hemp songs that she performed at rallies across the country and around the world.
Musikka resides in Eugene, Oregon, and served on the board of advisors of Voter Power. [1]
Born in Colombia to a Colombian mother and a Norwegian/Finnish father, [6] Elvy’s family moved to New York City to live with her stepfather after her father died. Having limited vision since childhood, music became a big part of her life. She had a broad set of musical influences, as well as being president of the Eddie Fisher fan club in her school. For her sophomore year of high school, she lived in Puerto Rico, where she was a DJ with her own radio show. She finished high school in Florida, where she later married and had children, and a career at the phone company and in banking.
Musikka was named High Times magazine's 1992 Freedom Fighter of the Year at the Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam. [3] [5] In 2003, she was given NORML’s Outstanding Cannabis Advocate Award for Advancing the Cause of Marijuana Law Reform. [7]
Seattle Hempfest is an annual event in the city of Seattle, Washington advocating the legalization of cannabis. Vivian McPeak serves as the organization's executive director. Founded in 1991 as the Washington Hemp Expo, a self-described "humble gathering of stoners" attended by only 500 people, and renamed the following year as Hempfest, it has grown into a three-day annual political rally, concert, and arts and crafts fair with attendance typically over 100,000. Speakers have included Seattle city council member Nick Licata, actor/activist Woody Harrelson (2004), travel writer and TV host Rick Steves (2007), (2010), 2012 Green Party speaker Jill Stein, Dallas Cowboys center Mark Stepnoski (2003), and former chief of the Seattle Police Department Norm Stamper (2006). Hempfest has also in recent years attracted such well-known performers as Fishbone (2002), The Kottonmouth Kings (2004), Rehab (2006), and Pato Banton (2007) to its five stages spread throughout Myrtle Edwards Park and Elliott Bay Park, on Seattle's waterfront.
Paul Armentano is an American cannabis activist. He is the Deputy Director of NORML. He also serves on the faculty of Oaksterdam University in Oakland, where he is the Chair of Science.
The Oregon Medical Marijuana Act, a law in the U.S. state of Oregon, was established by Oregon Ballot Measure 67 in 1998, passing with 54.6% support. It modified state law to allow the cultivation, possession, and use of marijuana by doctor recommendation for patients with certain medical conditions. The Act does not affect federal law, which still prohibits the cultivation and possession of marijuana.
Oaksterdam is a cultural district on the north end of Downtown Oakland, California, where medical cannabis is available for purchase in cafés, clubs, and patient dispensaries. Oaksterdam is located between downtown proper, the Lakeside, and the financial district. It is roughly bordered by 14th Street on the southwest, Harrison Street on the southeast, 19th Street on the northeast, and Telegraph Avenue on the northwest. The name is a portmanteau of "Oakland" and "Amsterdam," due to the Dutch city's cannabis coffee shops and the drug policy of the Netherlands.
In the United States, the non-medical use of cannabis is legalized in 24 states and decriminalized in 7 states, as of November 2023. Decriminalization refers to a policy of reduced penalties for cannabis offenses, typically involving a civil penalty for possessing small amounts, instead of criminal prosecution or the threat of arrest. In jurisdictions without penalty the policy is referred to as legalization, although the term decriminalization is sometimes used for this purpose as well.
In the United States, increased restrictions and labeling of cannabis as a poison began in many states from 1906 onward, and outright prohibitions began in the 1920s. By the mid-1930s cannabis was regulated as a drug in every state, including 35 states that adopted the Uniform State Narcotic Drug Act. The first national regulation was the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937.
Jodie Emery is a Canadian cannabis rights activist and politician. She is the estranged spouse of fellow activist Marc Emery. Until the business was shut down by police, the couple were co-owners of Cannabis Culture, a business that franchised pot dispensaries, later deemed to be illegal. They had obtained the cannabis from illegal sources, according to Crown prosecutors. They are the former operators and owners of Cannabis Culture magazine and Pot TV.
Cannabis in Oregon is legal for both medical and recreational use. In recent decades, the U.S. state of Oregon has had a number of legislative, legal, and cultural events surrounding use of cannabis. Oregon was the first state to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of cannabis, and among the first to authorize its use for medical purposes. An attempt to recriminalize possession of small amounts of cannabis was turned down by Oregon voters in 1997.
In the United States, the use of cannabis for medical purposes is legal in 38 states, four out of five permanently inhabited U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia, as of March 2023. Ten other states have more restrictive laws limiting THC content, for the purpose of allowing access to products that are rich in cannabidiol (CBD), a non-psychoactive component of cannabis. There is significant variation in medical cannabis laws from state to state, including how it is produced and distributed, how it can be consumed, and what medical conditions it can be used for.
Initiative 1068 was a proposed initiative for the November 2010 Washington state general election that would have removed criminal penalties from the adult use, possession, and cultivation of marijuana in Washington. Sponsored by Vivian McPeak, Douglass Hiatt, Jeffrey Steinborn, Philip Dawdy, initiative I-1068 sought to legalize marijuana by removing marijuana offenses from the state's controlled substances act, but failed to gather enough signatures to qualify for the ballot.
Robert C. Randall was an American advocate for medical marijuana and the founder of Alliance for Cannabis Therapeutics.
The legal history of cannabis in the United States began with state-level prohibition in the early 20th century, with the first major federal limitations occurring in 1937. Starting with Oregon in 1973, individual states began to liberalize cannabis laws through decriminalization. In 1996, California became the first state to legalize medical cannabis, sparking a trend that spread to a majority of states by 2016. In 2012, Washington and Colorado became the first states to legalize cannabis for recreational use.
Cannabis in Nevada became legal for recreational use on January 1, 2017, following the passage of Question 2 on the 2016 ballot with 54% of the vote. The first licensed sales of recreational cannabis began on July 1, 2017.
The Florida Medical Marijuana Legalization Initiative, also known as Amendment 2, was approved by voters in the Tuesday, November 8, 2016, general election in the State of Florida. The bill required a super-majority vote to pass, with at least 60% of voters voting for support of a state constitutional amendment. Florida already had a medical marijuana law in place, but only for those who are terminally ill and with less than a year left to live. The goal of Amendment 2 is to alleviate those suffering from these medical conditions: cancer, epilepsy, glaucoma, positive status for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Crohn's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, chronic nonmalignant pain caused by a qualifying medical condition or that originates from a qualified medical condition or other debilitating medical conditions comparable to those listed. Under Amendment 2, the medical marijuana will be given to the patient if the physician believes that the medical use of marijuana would likely outweigh the potential health risks for a patient. Smoking the medication was not allowed under a statute passed by the Florida State Legislature, however this ban was struck down by Leon County Circuit Court Judge Karen Gievers on May 25, 2018.
Cannabis in Washington relates to a number of legislative, legal, and cultural events surrounding the use of cannabis. On December 6, 2012, Washington became the first U.S. state to legalize recreational use of marijuana and the first to allow recreational marijuana sales, alongside Colorado. The state had previously legalized medical marijuana in 1998. Under state law, cannabis is legal for medical purposes and for any purpose by adults over 21.
Madeline Martinez is an American cannabis rights activist.
George McMahon (1950–2019) was an American cannabis rights activist.
Cannabis rights or marijuana rights are individual civil rights that vary by jurisdiction. The rights of people who consume cannabis include the right to be free from employment discrimination and housing discrimination.
Steve McWilliams was a medical marijuana activist from San Diego, California who protested the treatment of people under anti-cannabis laws. He committed suicide in 2005.
Isoisä Olli Musikka muutti Suomesta Norjaan, ja kun Musikan isä oli syntynyt, perhe muutti Norjasta Kolumbiaan
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