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FABO has been spending this year collecting signatures to put the initiative on the ballot this November. In order to promote the initiative, For A Better Ohio has also staged a “potluck” picnic on OSU’s campus, a march down High Street, and most recently, the annual Hempfest, also held on campus.
The picnic, held on April 20th at 4:20, was a peaceful demonstration in the truest sense, where participants successfully demonstrated that someone can just get high and not be a criminal. Gatherers shared what they had with one another and hung out, playing drums, meeting one another, eating all-organic vegetarian food supplied by the Clintonville Community Co-op, and prepared under the watchful eye of main coordinator of the event, Sean Luse. “The picnic was a success because it was both a celebration of cannabis culture and of the earth. The marijuana movement is deeply intertwined with environmental issues like deforestation,” said Luse. Information was provided that explained the connection between marijuana prohibition, farm factories and the continued destruction of our environment. An environment was definitely created by everyone there, a mood, where people could be, and be high, responsibly, and in public. You had to ask yourself, what’s the crime here?
Only a couple of weeks later, on May 5th, people teamed up again to show solidarity for the general cause of cannabis liberation as we all marched down High Street from 15th Avenue to Goodale Park. For A Better Ohio promoted the event, which was one part of a worldwide day of demonstrations called the Million Marijuana March. The ambition was to bring a million like-minded people together into action across the Earth. The result, at least in Columbus, was a snakelike cloud of smoke issuing forth from willing and responsible users stretching for blocks at a time. One experienced demonstrator exclaimed “High Street hasn’t smelled this good since the 70’s!” and the message sent to those lucky enough to witness such a remarkable display was resounding and unanimous: “Cannabis Sativa is under attack! What are we gonna do? Stand up, fight back!”
What better way to fight drug war propaganda than to let truth speak for itself? These demonstrators weren’t causing crime. They weren’t hurting anyone, not themselves, not anyone else. This wasn’t a march where people blocked traffic or disturbed the peace. The only law broken at this march was the marijuana law, and what was the aftermath of this flagrant display of lawlessness? The same handful of people who marched, sat down at Goodale Park, smoked a joint and relaxed, and were once again demonstrating that a peaceful soul opting to get high is by no means a criminal or drug abuser. Quite the contrary. That day people used the drug without abusing it, as a tool, to make a point.
Of course, this point is made best of all at an event like Hempfest. Occurring annually and predictably on the Saturday before finals week at Ohio State, widely advertised, it is a large enough of an event to draw the attention of undercover officers who would love to give the cannabis movement a bad name. But year after year, the efforts of these covert operators are confounded by the good nature of those who attend Hempfest. Officers attempted to entrap concertgoers who were just enjoying the day’s festivities by trying to talk them into selling them something. Fortunately, Hempfest has never been about buying or selling drugs for personal profit, and thus year after year undercovers are left frustrated and empty handed. If anything, this kind of clandestine police effort helps to galvanize the beliefs of those approached so blatantly for drugs. It gives fuel to For A Better Ohio’s initiative to take the crime out of responsible cannabis use, which would give police a new directive on law enforcement. Hempfest this year was all about the local initiative, and this point was best illustrated by the stack of signed petitions collected at the end of the day.
For A Better Ohio is still collecting signatures, and will have a booth at Comfest, so if you haven’t had a chance to sign the petition just yet, please come and visit us soon!
For A Better Ohio – 265-8683, forabetterohio@hotmail.com, www.ohiohemp.org
Brian Horstman is a member of For A Better Ohio and of the Board of the Free Press.