The SSDP "Just Say Know" conference in DC was one of the best experiences I have had in a long time. On Friday we went and met with our congressmen I was lucky enough to have three. Meeting with John Tierney, John Kerry, and Ted Kennedy's staffers was really empowering for myself and the other members of my group. Friday night featured the SSDP congress, during which we went over ideas that will bring the organization into the future.
The drug war education day was also excellent. It featured some of the best speakers I have ever seen at a conference including Bill Press from MSNBC and syndicated Chicago Tribune Columnist Clarence Page. They spoke on the way that the media covers the war on drugs, and coming from to people who have been so successful in the industry they were critiquing really put it into perspective. That Night was the awards ceremony and we didn't leave empty handed. Jon Perri won Student Activist of the Year, he deserves it not many people in this movement are as dedicated as he is. Jon also got elected to the Board of directors. The other award we took home was Outstanding Chapter for a small college. This was a great thing for all the dedicated kids up at FPC. To be able to stand in front of my peers and to be awarded for my passion was an awesome experience.
Sunday was Activist Training day. I had the privilege of attending an Advanced Media workshop with former Democratic National committee press Secretary Terry Micheal. He was amazing and explained what has to be done to get the Newspapers and other media outlets to care about drug policy. He was very interesting and talked about Op-eds he has written about Neo-prohibitionist thinking and the failure of the drug policy movement to take initiative in critiquing the coverage of newspapers.
This conference was awesome and I'm looking to spend the summer in DC on an internship. Thanks to everyone who has supported SSDP over the past year. The amount of support and strength of our friendships has truly dimmed out the negativity on this campus.