Despite a denied permit application (as if that ws going to stop anyone), Vancouver’s annual 4/20 event is currently underway at Sunset Beach, where it’s being hosted for the second year in a row.
One of the longest running demonstraions of civil disobedience in the country, the event brought vendors and cannabis users alike to the beach beneath the Burrard Street bridge to celebrate cannabis culture and it’s various applications.
If you thought 4/20 was all homemade edibles and joints, you’d be wrong: the range of products for sale was vast and included everything from hot sauce to dog treats to topical creams and more. (More on that, soon.)
Jodie Emery spoke briefly to the crowd around 2 p.m., where she warned cannabis users that under the proposed federal legislation for legalization, they’d still be viewed by the government as ‘second-class citizens’ and ‘criminals’.
‘If you’ve been victimized by prohibition, you’re not going to get amnesty or pardons or an apology from this government,’ she said.
‘It is wrong and unjust and evil and cruel to arrest and demonize peaceful people for a plant. It is wrong to surpress an industry that exsists, that operates peacefully, supplying medicine to those in need, and to those who want cannabis to enjoy it. It’s wrong to keep the industry and culture criminalized, but that’s what the government intends to do.’
‘The Liberals got our vote,’ she said. ‘I admit it, I stood here, and I told you to vote Liberal, beacuse they promised us. They promised they would stop arresting us.’
Despite her recent arrest and a hearing scheduled for tomorrow morning in Toronto, Emery vowed to the crowd that she would never stop fighting for the freedom of cannabis users in Canada.
Stay tuned for more coverage, including a video interview featuring Emery.
Early stage plants were available for purchase at a few booths. Credit: Amanda SiebertAfter 20 minutes, this joint had only gone down by two centimetres. Credit: Amanda SiebertJoints of every possible imaginable shape, size, and variety were available for purchase, and in many cases they were given away for free. Credit: Amanda SiebertThese high-CBD cannabis juice shots contain apple and carrot juice, and resembles wheat grass juice. Credit: Amanda SiebertMany local dispensaries, including Eggs Canna, were present at Sunset Beach. Credit: Amanda SiebertThis particular strain is called Purple Rain for obvious reasons. Credit: Amanda Siebert Credit: Amanda SiebertThe necessary smell test. Credit: Amanda SiebertMany booths offered attendees free dabs Credit: Amanda SiebertThe beach makes for a nice escape when crowds get too overwhelming. Credit: Amanda SiebertFrom the hill overlooking the park at Sunset Beach. Credit: Amanda Siebert Credit: Amanda SiebertMany flocked to this rocky point to smoke (and to empty old bong water). Credit: Amanda SiebertGoing home with a new plant. Credit: Amanda SiebertSome serious dedication to cannabis. Credit: Amanda Siebert Credit: Amanda SiebertThrough a cloud of smoke, Jodie Emery passionately discussed the Liberal government’s legalization plans to a crowd around 2 p.m. this afternoon. Credit: Amanda SiebertUnique advertising sure to catch the attention of dazed 4/20 attendees. Credit: Amanda Siebert Credit: Amanda Siebert Credit: Amanda Siebert Credit: Amanda Siebert Credit: Amanda Siebert Credit: Amanda SiebertArtisan handmade baked goods were plentiful at this year’s event. Credit: Amanda SiebertThough they may have appeared to be paying close attention, the Vancouver Police Department didn’t seem to be bothering any attendees or vendors at the beach. Credit: Amanda Siebert
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