Boston Freedom Rally: New England Gaining Ground
I recently had the pleasure of attending the 25th annual Boston Freedom Rally, the two-day celebration of marijuana and protest against marijuana prohibition, held on the Boston Common each September sponsored by MassCann/NORML, the NORML state affiliate in Massachusetts.
I have been attending this event since the mid-1990s, and always look forward to spending time with tens of thousands of like-minded people on the historic Boston Common, enjoying the New England autumn.
The Boston Common is the oldest public park in America, consisting of 50 acres of land in the heart of the city, at the southern foot of Beacon Hill, the site of the Massachusetts Statehouse, and it enjoys a storied past. In the 1630s, the Common was used by several families as a cow pasture. In 1713 it was the site of citizen riots, protesting a food shortage. In 1775, it was used by the British as a staging area from which they left for the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War.
The Common was used for public hangings until 1817, and has been the site of numerous public protests in modern times. In 1964, Martin Luther King, Jr. addressed a crowd on the need for racial justice in the north, as well as the south. In 1969, it was the scene of a massive anti-Vietnam War protest. And in 1979, Pope John Paul II spoke on the Common.
The Boston Freedom Rally, which began in 1989 in North Adams, Mass., moved to Beacon Hill in 1991 and then to the Common in 1992, where it has remained for 23 years, despite a long, tortured history of opposition by city officials and local law enforcement, requiring legal action repeatedly over the years to obtain injunctions forcing the city to approve the required permits for the event.
While some local opposition to this event remains, the sponsors finally appear to have achieved a degree of détente with the local establishment, and this celebration of marijuana appears likely to be around for the foreseeable future.
Like the Seattle Hempfest, this event, which is free to the public, features local and regional bands playing throughout the day on two stages. Marijuana activists deliver short speeches between bands on both days, providing most groups who are involved in the legalization movement the opportunity to have their time on the stage.
Marijuana smokers, now that we have tasted a bit of personal freedom, are not about to go back into the closet, and we will continue to find comfort in public gatherings with like-minded citizens, to celebrate marijuana and exercise our personal freedom.
For many years, the police would arrest as many as 50 or more attendees each year for marijuana smoking, by sending undercover agents into the crowd, and by establishing an intimidating curtain of police presence surrounding the entire event.
I personally experienced the police presence in 2007, when fellow NORML board member (and High Times associate publisher) Rick Cusick and I were busted for sharing a joint behind the combined NORML/High Times booth. It turned out we were among the last marijuana smokers arrested in Massachusetts, as the state decriminalized minor marijuana offenses the following year.
There were lots of folks openly smoking at the Freedom Rally this year, but I did not see any tickets being issued by the police (possession of up to one ounce currently carries a $100 civil fine, with no arrest or criminal record), who kept a relatively low profile.
At 4:20 on Saturday on the main stage, Rick and I (and others) shared a joint publicly this year, as did tens of thousands of attendees in the crowd, with no law enforcement response. It appears the local police have accepted the reality that marijuana has been decriminalized; and it is clearly not as emotionally rewarding to issue civil citations as it was under prior law to arrest smokers! By decriminalizing marijuana, we have taken the “fun” out of marijuana prohibition for the police.
These outdoor protestivals are always vulnerable to bad weather, and we did experience some significant rain late Saturday afternoon, which drove the sizable crowd running for cover, essentially emptying the Common for the remainder of the first day. But the weather had been delightful earlier in the day, and was beautiful on Sunday, so the crowds had plenty of time to enjoy the music and the speakers and the carnival-like atmosphere, and to relax and enjoy a day in the park.
The event attracts scores of vendors and exhibitors, both food and paraphernalia (lots of glass), as well as those of us who are there to advocate for public policy changes. One noticeable difference this year was the large number of vendors offering products related to making and using wax and concentrates; dabbing has clearly reached the northeast. Also, with the new medical use law in Massachusetts, edibles and their use played a more prominent role than in the past.
The crowds this year were quite large, certainly tens of thousands of people, filling a significant portion of the Common by mid-afternoon, and making it a challenge to traverse the grounds. Marijuana smokers in Massachusetts have a lot to celebrate, with the state having decriminalized marijuana in 2008 and legalized medical use in 2012.
The process for selecting those licensed to grow and sell medical marijuana has been complicated by some irregularities, with questions raised about political favoritism, resulting in some licenses being revoked. Nonetheless, it appears the first of the legal medical dispensaries will be up and running by the spring of 2015. It has taken longer than it should have, but authorized patients in Massachusetts will soon have a safe and convenient source for their legal marijuana.
Now the political debate has moved to the need for full legalization for all adults in the state, regardless of why they smoke, with two competing groups announcing their intent to qualify legalization initiatives for the 2016 ballot. Current polling suggests a legalization proposal would likely win approval from the voters; but, of course, qualifying an initiative for the ballot remains the immediate goal. Hopefully the competing groups will find some common ground and pool their resources and energy to assure Massachusetts joins the growing list of legalization states in 2016.
By the end of the second day, it was time to close down the booth and catch a plane back to Washington DC and reality. But it surely had been personally exhilarating to be part of the public celebration called the Boston Freedom Rally for two days. I would encourage anyone from New England to join us next year for the 26th annual Boston Freedom Rally.
I have been attending this event since the mid-1990s, and always look forward to spending time with tens of thousands of like-minded people on the historic Boston Common, enjoying the New England autumn.
The Boston Common is the oldest public park in America, consisting of 50 acres of land in the heart of the city, at the southern foot of Beacon Hill, the site of the Massachusetts Statehouse, and it enjoys a storied past. In the 1630s, the Common was used by several families as a cow pasture. In 1713 it was the site of citizen riots, protesting a food shortage. In 1775, it was used by the British as a staging area from which they left for the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War.
The Common was used for public hangings until 1817, and has been the site of numerous public protests in modern times. In 1964, Martin Luther King, Jr. addressed a crowd on the need for racial justice in the north, as well as the south. In 1969, it was the scene of a massive anti-Vietnam War protest. And in 1979, Pope John Paul II spoke on the Common.
The Boston Freedom Rally, which began in 1989 in North Adams, Mass., moved to Beacon Hill in 1991 and then to the Common in 1992, where it has remained for 23 years, despite a long, tortured history of opposition by city officials and local law enforcement, requiring legal action repeatedly over the years to obtain injunctions forcing the city to approve the required permits for the event.
While some local opposition to this event remains, the sponsors finally appear to have achieved a degree of détente with the local establishment, and this celebration of marijuana appears likely to be around for the foreseeable future.
Like the Seattle Hempfest, this event, which is free to the public, features local and regional bands playing throughout the day on two stages. Marijuana activists deliver short speeches between bands on both days, providing most groups who are involved in the legalization movement the opportunity to have their time on the stage.
Marijuana smokers, now that we have tasted a bit of personal freedom, are not about to go back into the closet, and we will continue to find comfort in public gatherings with like-minded citizens, to celebrate marijuana and exercise our personal freedom.
For many years, the police would arrest as many as 50 or more attendees each year for marijuana smoking, by sending undercover agents into the crowd, and by establishing an intimidating curtain of police presence surrounding the entire event.
I personally experienced the police presence in 2007, when fellow NORML board member (and High Times associate publisher) Rick Cusick and I were busted for sharing a joint behind the combined NORML/High Times booth. It turned out we were among the last marijuana smokers arrested in Massachusetts, as the state decriminalized minor marijuana offenses the following year.
There were lots of folks openly smoking at the Freedom Rally this year, but I did not see any tickets being issued by the police (possession of up to one ounce currently carries a $100 civil fine, with no arrest or criminal record), who kept a relatively low profile.
At 4:20 on Saturday on the main stage, Rick and I (and others) shared a joint publicly this year, as did tens of thousands of attendees in the crowd, with no law enforcement response. It appears the local police have accepted the reality that marijuana has been decriminalized; and it is clearly not as emotionally rewarding to issue civil citations as it was under prior law to arrest smokers! By decriminalizing marijuana, we have taken the “fun” out of marijuana prohibition for the police.
These outdoor protestivals are always vulnerable to bad weather, and we did experience some significant rain late Saturday afternoon, which drove the sizable crowd running for cover, essentially emptying the Common for the remainder of the first day. But the weather had been delightful earlier in the day, and was beautiful on Sunday, so the crowds had plenty of time to enjoy the music and the speakers and the carnival-like atmosphere, and to relax and enjoy a day in the park.
The event attracts scores of vendors and exhibitors, both food and paraphernalia (lots of glass), as well as those of us who are there to advocate for public policy changes. One noticeable difference this year was the large number of vendors offering products related to making and using wax and concentrates; dabbing has clearly reached the northeast. Also, with the new medical use law in Massachusetts, edibles and their use played a more prominent role than in the past.
The crowds this year were quite large, certainly tens of thousands of people, filling a significant portion of the Common by mid-afternoon, and making it a challenge to traverse the grounds. Marijuana smokers in Massachusetts have a lot to celebrate, with the state having decriminalized marijuana in 2008 and legalized medical use in 2012.
The process for selecting those licensed to grow and sell medical marijuana has been complicated by some irregularities, with questions raised about political favoritism, resulting in some licenses being revoked. Nonetheless, it appears the first of the legal medical dispensaries will be up and running by the spring of 2015. It has taken longer than it should have, but authorized patients in Massachusetts will soon have a safe and convenient source for their legal marijuana.
Now the political debate has moved to the need for full legalization for all adults in the state, regardless of why they smoke, with two competing groups announcing their intent to qualify legalization initiatives for the 2016 ballot. Current polling suggests a legalization proposal would likely win approval from the voters; but, of course, qualifying an initiative for the ballot remains the immediate goal. Hopefully the competing groups will find some common ground and pool their resources and energy to assure Massachusetts joins the growing list of legalization states in 2016.
By the end of the second day, it was time to close down the booth and catch a plane back to Washington DC and reality. But it surely had been personally exhilarating to be part of the public celebration called the Boston Freedom Rally for two days. I would encourage anyone from New England to join us next year for the 26th annual Boston Freedom Rally.
