Adam Eidinger and Alan Amsterdam wanted Capitol Hemp to be the headquarters for cannabis and hemp activism in Washington DC. The impetus for I71 started with a raid in 2011 that forced Capitol Hemp to close both of its locations in Adams Morgan and Chinatown.
Initiative 71 was passed overwhelmingly by the citizens of Washington DC 2014. It gave DC residents the right to grow and process their own cannabis and give away their bounty one ounce at a time to any citizen in the world over 21. It also legalized cannabis paraphernalia, which was a direct result of Capitol Hemp being raided and subsequently forced out of Washington DC.