cannabisnews.com: Hempfest Might Still Rise from Ashes





Hempfest Might Still Rise from Ashes
Posted by CN Staff on June 04, 2004 at 08:01:47 PT
By Ben Nanamaker
Source: The Lantern
Ohio State's attempts to force the 17th annual Ohio Hempfest to go up in smoke are being met with resistance by organizers of the event.According to a local media report, Ohio State's director of Judicial Affairs Pat Hall informed Hempfest organizers Tuesday the event was cancelled. Hall said the cancellation was because event sponsor Students for Sensible Drug Policy failed to give the university 10 days notice of the event and did not get written permission from their faculty sponsor to hold the festival.
In response to the cancellation, the organizers struck back, seeking an injunction in federal circuit court to overturn the university's decision and hold the event as planned."We feel it's more of a free speech issue than the technicality," SSDP president and undeclared freshman Mark Verhoff said.Organizers of the event, primarily sponsored by SSDP, said planning for the event began in October and was scheduled for the South Oval by Jan. 5. Verhoff said the group called the university within 10 normal days, not business days, of the event. SSDP was required to contact the university 10 business days before the event because of sanctions placed on the group by Hall, but Verhoff said the event was scheduled before the university imposed the sanctions."We don't think it's a legitimate claim that they didn't know about the Hempfest," said Sean Luse, OSU graduate and Hempfest organizer.Sarah Clark, another Hempfest organizer and OSU graduate, said she believes the decision was motivated by police Chief John Petry's dislike for what Hempfest supports."My personal opinion is that the OSU police chief has a vendetta against activism - especially activism concerning cannibus - and I think in some close-door meetings he convinced the university to cancel the event instead of working with us," she said.Petry, in a local media report, said he was hesitant to give permission for the event because of drug abuse at past Hempfests and because the organizers seemed to encourage it.  However, Clark disputes that claim and said any problems that have occurred during that weekend haven't been explicitly linked to the event."I think that's an unsubstantiated lie," she said. "Our crowds are upwards of 10,000 people, and the worst activity that I've ever heard of are citations to less than a handful of people. There's never been any violence; there's never been any mass arrests at Hempfest."Attempts have been made to discuss the event's cancellation with OSU's administration, but Verhoff said there was no significant response."We just want to work with OSU to come to an agreement in the best interests of everyone, yet they don't seem willing to work with us," Clark said.Regardless of whether the injunction to block the university's decision succeeds, organizers still plan to meet on the South Oval at noon."There isn't a contingency plan other than to have a rally on the Oval for our First Amendment rights," Clark said.If Hempfest does not occur as it was originally planned, efforts will be made to responsibly deal with people who come down and discover the event's cancellation."We're making sure that the crowd does show up and is managed in an orderly fashion," Verhoff said.The court hearing for the filed injunction will be held at 8 a.m. today in the Sixth Circuit Court.Hall was out of the office Thursday and unavailable for comment. Petry did not return phone calls.Source: The Lantern (OH)Author: Ben NanamakerPublished: Friday, June 4, 2004 Copyright: 2004 ngda - The Lantern Contact: lantern osu.eduWebsite: http://www.thelantern.com/SSDPhttp://www.ssdp.org/Ohio Hempfest Serieshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/press.htmCannabisNews -- Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml 
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Comment #6 posted by Universer on June 04, 2004 at 22:44:08 PT
Way To Go, OSU!
We Hokies salute those fine Buckeyes!Yeah, I know the school administration was forced, but still, I know the students will turn out now!I wonder how far Columbus is from Northern Virginia.
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on June 04, 2004 at 15:19:51 PT
Judge Rules Hempfest Must Go On
OSU Disappointed In RulingJune 4, 2004COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A judge ruled Friday that Ohio State University officials must allow Hempfest to be held Saturday on the school's South Oval, NewsChannel 4 reported.Students for Sensible Drug Policy, the student organization sponsoring the festival, filed suit in U.S. District Court Thursday seeking an injunction to overturn a university decision to cancel the festival's reservation."We are disappointed in the ruling," said Bill Hall, university vice president of student affairs. "But, we respect the court's decision and will comply with this ruling." The university said it revoked the reservation for the festival because SSDP reportedly failed to meet requirements to notify university police at least 10 business days in advance of the event.Hempfest has been held on Ohio State's campus since 1996. The event includes speakers, bands, literature tables and vendors. The event will run from noon to midnight.Stay with NewsChannel 4 and nbc4columbus.com for more information.http://www.nbc4columbus.com/index.htmlhttp://140.254.2.122:1420/info.htm17th Annual Ohio Hempfest, 2004VICTORY IS OURS!Students for Sensible Drug Policy is Delighted to inform you that the 17th Annual Ohio Hempfest will go on as planned. SSDP and its team of lawyers have gained an injunction from the 6th Circuit Federal Court regarding the 17th Annual OSU SSDP Hempfest. Thank you for your support of this community event.So come out Saturday, June 5th at Noon an celebrate!
When: June 5th from Noon to MidnightWhere: The South Oval of the Ohio State University Campus
Columbus, OHWhat:Hempfest is Ohio’s biggest and best freedom festival featuring a unique mix of music, vendors, activism, and of course cannabis. The Ohio Hempfest will provide citizens with ways that they can get involved with their local community, while at the same time bringing people together to enjoy a full day of live music, hand-made crafts, good food, and great fun.Why:The Goal of The Ohio Hempfest is to educate citizens on the harms caused by the War on Drugs and bring to light the many uses of the cannabis plant.
The Ohio Hempfest Web Site
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on June 04, 2004 at 14:13:12 PT
Editorial from The Lantern
'Fest Smoked Out: Hempfest Cancellation UnfairPublished: Friday, June 4, 2004 Citing university procedure violations by Students for Sensible Drug Policy, Ohio State decided Tuesday to cancel Hempfest, an event that has run annually since 1996. The noon-to-midnight festival was scheduled to run this weekend, but Pat Hall, director of student affairs, said Students for Sensible Drug Policy, the event's sponsor, committed the following infractions: It did not have written permission from its faculty adviser, and it failed to give OSU 10 days' notice when filing for its space.Hall said the group had to comply with the two stipulations because students smoked pot at an event it hosted in November. The organization had their request for space on the South Oval approved in April, but Rich Hollingsworth, associate vice president of student affairs, said that "reserving space does not equal permission to hold an event," according to local media.The first university mishandling of the situation might have been that Hall sent the letter specifying these two requirements to a student who no longer was the president, the sponsor's leadership said. But there are larger issues to the story.The big picture is that this is the latest event in a string of last-minute rash decisions made by OSU regarding big events on campus. Last month, the Big Free Concert became a debacle when the Ohio Union Activities Board changed its date and location the week of the performance, inconveniencing students and trashing tradition to a point of guaranteeing the concert's failure. It is also reminiscent of the fiasco in 2002 in which OSU pulled out ads for Dockside Dolls gentlemen's club from thousands of faculty and staff directories. Dockside Dolls said it went through the proper channels and the ads had been approved, but the ads were removed literally by hand at the zero hour when the directories were set to ship. The club directed accusations of censorship at the university and was refunded $8,000.Hollingsworth said the Hempfest cancellation is not about the event, but "compliance with the directives of the Office of Judicial Affairs." He also said that the group could reschedule the event, although "that would be a little hard to do with the school year ending."The bottom line is the university violated the rights of Students for Sensible Drug Policy and especially those of the bands, speakers, vendors and student groups set to attend. The event's organizers do not encourage the use of illegal substances, although it is possible some people might bring them to the event. And despite the possible presence of pot at Hempfest, Hollingsorth and Hall both said they did not remember having any trouble at the event in previous years. Plus, the money the attendees spent to be featured here and the earnings they counted on cannot be made up. OSU needs to start realizing the deep level on which its eleventh-hour panic attacks can affect thousands of crimeless students.http://www.thelantern.com/news/2004/06/04/Opinion/fest-Smoked.Out-684530.shtml
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Comment #3 posted by Virgil on June 04, 2004 at 09:37:17 PT
The Cannabus
The Cannabus is a historical bus. I think Timothy Leary took everyone on a trip when there was the call to tune in and drop out. I do not think he called it the Cannabus, but that Marc Emery or the Marijuana Party people bought it and called it the Cannabus.I know what you are talking about Afterburner. I am just not sure of the exact details.
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Comment #2 posted by afterburner on June 04, 2004 at 09:29:23 PT
Virgil, I Agree
but in British Columbia, they had/have a bus painted with cannabis plants. Now, that is a canna-bus I like.Toronto City Hall first approved, then cancelled permits for Toronto's first Canabian Day after the insurance company refused to insure the event, claiming that it promoted an "illegal" activity. This happened during the Ontario Court of Appeals window of legal cannabis possession, "August 1, 2001 until October 7, 2003 when somehow mysteriously the courts passed legislation that there are now new laws to replace the ones that died on Terry Parker Day." --VirgilWe went ahead and had the event anyway at Queens Park, right behind the Provincial Parliament building. And we had a great time, even if the numbers were less than expected due to the change of location and cancellation of the stage and electrical system. Cannabis In Canada http://www.cannabiscanada.ca/ Next stop, the Federal Parliament: Fill The Hill 2004 - Freedom March on Parliament Hill http://www.fillthehill.ca/main.html
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Comment #1 posted by Virgil on June 04, 2004 at 08:13:11 PT
Why can't they spell cannabis?
especially activism concerning cannibus Cannabis is rarely seen in print in the controlled media, but that is no excuse. 
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