Posted on 04/17/2011 11:39:21 PM PDT by matt04
AMHERST – Rocker Steve Miller is a self-declared “midnight toker,” but he’s got nothing on hundreds of people on the Amherst town commons Sunday who sparked up at noon.
The 20th annual Extravaganja festival, put on by the University of Massachusetts at Amherst’s Cannabis Reform Coalition, kicked off Saturday and continued for two days, the first time it has lasted more than one day since its inception. The event was chock-full of speakers, vendors and bands and was meant to raise awareness of the pro-marijuana legalization movement.
This year was also the first time participants were allowed to smoke marijuana openly without fear of consequences. If, of course, they followed the CRC’s rules, made in conjunction with local police.
Rule number one: smoke on the town commons and nowhere else. Rule number two: no selling drugs. Rule number three: no alcohol.
Emily Butler, spokesperson for the CRC, said the crowd had been “pretty good. We haven’t had any incidents.”
...
“It really is uncivilized that you have laws preventing you from doing what you want with your own body,” said Terry Franklin, who Butler said has been with the CRC since the beginning, in a speech to the crowd.
Extravaganja “is a Renaissance of freedom,” Franklin said. He detailed plans to bring protesters to the New Hampshire primaries for the 2012 presidential elections, as well as every campaign stop for every candidate, to push for legalization.
...
But the Amherst Police mostly looked the other way this weekend. Sgt. Jesus Arrocho said they patrolled around the commons and issued a total of 17 citations for possession of less than an ounce of marijuana, but made no arrests.
"It's not really free and clear," said Arrocho. "Marijuana is illegal. ... People don't get a pass."
(Excerpt) Read more at masslive.com ...
Ad their logic shows when they call it "...uncivilized that you have laws preventing you from doing what you want with your own body" but most likely support more government regulation on everything else such as light bulbs and cars.
Look at the 2nd to last photo. How old is the "student?"
I used to work at 56 N. Pleasant St in Amherst. When Ellen Goodman’s kid lit himself up under the UN flag on the town common, we cheered.
“first time it has lasted more than one day since its inception”
Did it really last 2 days—or did it just seem like it lasted 2 days?
Freedom vs. license...
They should have teamed up with the Northwestern University Sex-Toy Club and had a big-old time.
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