Pubdate: Mon, 22 Aug 2005 Source: Hamilton Spectator (CN ON) Copyright: 2005 The Hamilton Spectator Contact: http://www.hamiltonspectator.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/181 Author: Gary Yokoyama Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada) UP IN SMOKE: POT USERS BLAZE A TRAIL City Hall was the scene of a marijuana smoke out over the weekend as 300 users lit up to celebrate Canabian Day. Hamilton police watched from a distance Saturday while protesters -- most of them in their late teens and early 20s -- passed around joints, pipes and bongs. Despite earlier warnings from police of swift arrests of anyone caught with marijuana, officers barely acknowledged the trafficking of pot happening right in front of them. "I have an operational plan and I'm following it and it's working well," said Superintendent Glyn Wide. "I'm not interested in any altercation here today. We're just making sure people are going to protest safely and without any injury." Keynote speaker and pot activist David Malmo Levine handed out more than half an ounce of unpressed powder bubble hashish -- worth about $1,000 -- to protesters who sat cross-legged in circles, pipes and bongs in hand. Bongs are specialized pot-smoking devices. The free-pot smoke-out coincided with the first anniversary of the opening of Up in Smoke, the city's first marijuana cafe. Protesters gathered at Ferguson Station around noon, waving Canadian flags, the maple leaf replaced with a cannabis leaf, and held up signs in support of decriminalizing marijuana. "Honk if you blaze," read one sign, "Free weed," read another. The crowd hollered wildly as dozens of drivers making their way along King Street honked their horns in support, which also drew attention to British Columbia's "Prince of Pot," Marc Emery. Canadian authorities arrested Emery earlier this month at the request of the U.S. government, which is seeking to extradite him to face charges related to the sale of marijuana seeds on the Internet and by mail. Levine, 34, said it's up to Canadians to set a good example when it comes to leading the way to decriminalizing marijuana. "It should be as legal as peppermint. Any drug can be used or misused," said Levine, who took his fight to decriminalize marijuana to the Supreme Court of Canada in 2003. A 6-3 decision upheld a federal law banning possession of small amounts of pot as well as the law prohibiting possession for trafficking. Wide refused to say how many police were at the protest, but half a dozen uniformed officers patrolled the area on foot and on bikes. Protesters could be seen smoking joints and the smell of marijuana hung over the area. Cafe owner Chris Goodwin said support for the protest from passersby speaks to the growing tolerance for marijuana use. "I believe we live in a just society where we're allowed to use our civil rights and Charter rights to protest," he said. Goodwin handed out 300 joints at Up in Smoke and filled dozens of pipes and bongs on the condition users smoke the weed at the protest. He said marching to City Hall sends a message that it's up to municipal leaders to make marijuana use the lowest priority when it comes to cracking down on users. Hamilton Mayor Larry Di Ianni said he wasn't pleased protesters lit up at City Hall. "It's too bad they would use our city and our City Hall to try to draw national and local attention to their cause. The best thing would be to ignore them." Hamilton resident Joe Brown couldn't help but notice the protest and the odour of pot. He and his wife ate lunch and watched the protest from the patio of Black Forest Inn. "I'm not upset by (the protest). We're better off to just legalize marijuana and save all the problems that go with it." Dan Urquhart, 21, drove in from St. Catharines to show his support. "We're a peaceful culture and believe in equal rights. Canadians believe in democratic and peaceful change." - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom