Gary Storck
“Today millions of people have access to medical marjiuana because of Jacki’s work,” says U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan.
I first met Jacki Rickert in September 1997 at the state Capitol, where she and her sheltie Bones were heading up a line of medical cannabis patients in wheelchairs completing a weeklong 210-mile “Journey for Justice” that began at her home in Mondovi, near Eau Claire. It wasn’t easy for Jacki to do a trip like that. Intractable pain, dislocating joints and regular flare-ups of illness made her life unpredictable. But she was determined to bring attention to the need to legalize medical cannabis in Wisconsin, telling the Eau Claire Leader Telegram before she left, “It’s definitely going to be hard, but it’s something I have to do.”
Rickert, founder in 1990 of medical cannabis advocacy group Is My Medicine Legal YET? (IMMLY), passed away early Dec. 26 at UW Hospital in Madison after decades of battling multiple medical conditions including Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. She was 66 years old.
Jacki’s physician, Dr. William E. Wright of Mondovi, managed in 1991 to get her enrolled in a tiny federal program that has supplied government cannabis to 28 or so patients over the years. Wright saw firsthand how cannabis could help Jacki, who was down to 68 pounds at one point.
Despite a signed contract, the federal cannabis cigarettes never arrived, and Jacki and her daughter fought back, contacting federal authorities and state and federal elected representatives to try to get her doctor’s prescription filled. In August 1992, at a campaign stop in Osseo, they even managed to get a few minutes with then presidential candidate Bill Clinton to share her story. Clinton promised if elected, she’d get her medicine in his first 100 days in office. Jacki never got her medicine, but she kept fighting.
The day Jacki and the Journey arrived at the Capitol, then Reps. Tammy Baldwin and Frank Boyle introduced AB 560, the first medical cannabis bill in 15 years. Jacki returned to the Capitol regularly, talking to media, speaking at press conferences when bills were introduced, testifying at public hearings and firing up the crowd at the annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival every fall in downtown Madison.
Jacki and IMMLY found a great ally in then state Rep. Mark Pocan, who was elected to Baldwin’s former assembly seat in 1998, and who introduced the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. Now in Congress, he has continued to cosponsor similar legislation.
“Fighting to legalize medical marijuana during the earliest days of her treatment, Jacki was a pioneer in bringing hope to millions of Americans who could benefit,” Pocan said in a Jan. 4 statement. “Even against strong opposition from state and federal officials who dismissed the science behind the treatment and her story, Jacki never gave up on her fight. Today, millions of Americans have access to medical marijuana because of Jacki’s work and her legacy will continue to touch people for generations. While we have not yet achieved success in every state or on the federal level, we will continue to champion Jacki’s cause to ensure that every American can get the medical treatment they need.”
Today, the movement Jacki helped build in Wisconsin has grown up. Patients are more willing to stand up and speak out. Veterans have joined the cause and become a force of their own. Lawmakers from both parties voice support. There are NORML chapters around the state working to end prohibition with dozens of groups on social media focusing on cannabis and Wisconsin.
Wisconsin patients will have legal access to medical cannabis some day. They will because people like Jacki Rickert left their comfort zones and fought for a medicine they knew they might never see legal. Had Wisconsin followed the trajectory of states including our neighbors, Michigan, Minnesota and Illinois, Jacki’s medicine would have been legal in her lifetime. While most Wisconsinites have long supported legal access to medical cannabis, politics has trumped the will of the people. Even an advisory referendum is off the table because the majority party fears the results.
Jacki’s dream can become a reality by making this year’s elections a referendum for change — Support only candidates who support medical cannabis. Jacki changed a lot of minds, but it’s time to elect a Legislature and governor in step with the overwhelming majority of Wisconsinites and finish the journey for justice Jacki got rolling.
Gary Storck is a longtime Wisconsin medical cannabis activist, the former communications director for IMMLY, and co-founder of Wisconsin and Madison NORML.
Jacki’s family is hosting a celebration of her life on Jan. 20 from 12 to 6 p.m. at Art In Gallery, 1444 E. Washington Ave., Madison. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help cover the costs of her memorial and final expenses.
