cannabisnews.com: Berlin Is Going to Pot





Berlin Is Going to Pot
Posted by FoM on August 30, 1999 at 18:04:42 PT
by Steve Kettmann 
Source: Wired News
BERLIN -- The third annual Hemp Parade down the Unter den Linden did not draw a bigger crowd than last year, but it has kicked up more controversy. 
The event itself was a mellow enough affair. It drew somewhere between 14,000 (say police) and 100,000 (say organizers), who either met at the Alexanderplatz for the pro-legalization march or joined the throng later in a massive party area set up near the Brandenburg Gate. Probably between 30,000 and 40,000 turned out, about the same as last year. See also: Berlin Rolls a Hemp Paradehttp://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread2665.shtml You could read leaflets from political parties or just listen to music and twist one off right there at the foot of Germany's most cherished landmark. For sale were javelin-sized bongs, novelty items ranging from Hawaiian-style leis made of faux-marijuana leaves to THC-loaded candies, and of course, wurst, wurst, and more wurst. But no sooner had the mess been cleaned up than the event came under attack. Odd as it might sound to outsiders, it was the left-wing Die Tageszeitung, a former alternative paper, that blasted away. The paper ripped it as a pot-smokers parade "without fire" in one headline and even grumbled that it was unnecessary. Criticism from the left might influence Berlin city officials against awarding a fourth parade permit next year, but probably not. More likely, it just signals the Hemp Parade's arrival as a fixture on the Berlin scene. That was pretty much the reaction of 44-year-old Isen Sander, a woodworking teacher who showed up late Saturday afternoon. "There are a lot of very young people," Sander muttered, almost to himself. "I heard about the parade and wanted to see, maybe because I also smoke." Teens heavily outnumbered the middle-aged like Sander. Some worked at stands selling extra-strength chai, soggy pot leaves and all. Some twitched to the beat of one of the bands while still others had both fun and serious matters on their minds. Aline Vennemann and her friend Liddy Krug hung out for a couple hours and then made an early exit. The two 15-year-olds had a great time people-watching, and couldn't hold back big, braces-baring smiles. But they also hoped the protest aspect would be taken seriously. "My mother has a slipped disk in her back, and she's in a lot of pain," said Vennemann. "When she smokes, the pain goes away. For me it would be much better if hemp were legal. "Right now she takes a lot of different pills. They are chemicals, not natural, like hemp, and they are not good for her. They destroy her stomach, so then she has to take other medicine for her stomach." Taking in all the low-key strangeness, you could almost believe in modest hopes like Vennemann's, if not for the more stoned-sounding ravings that Berlin will soon become another Amsterdam. The idea is if the event becomes known internationally, it might pressure the German government to legalize marijuana. Maria Papei of Berlin was sitting on a curb just at the end of the Tiergarten when she took a break between hits on a big, bugle-shaped Euro-joint to talk about how much she had been inconvenienced by the police. Never mind that a huge area in the tourist heart of the city had been set aside for a rollicking, raging party. "It's good because so many different people come here to dance and have a good time," she said. "But it seems like the police are not necessary. We were sitting in the park and they came up and said, 'Hey, go away.'" Wow. What a buzz-kill. Leave it to one of the models hired for a hemp-clothing fashion show to come up with a more sober-sounding take. Anneke Dannenberg, an 18-year-old from Ulm, was wandering around the area in a white-silk, push-up bra. She and her friend, Sarah Unseld, said they would not have come if they weren t working, since they do not support legalization. "I think marijuana is not as bad as alcohol," Dannenberg said. "But I like alcohol more because I get funny. When I smoke hash, I just want to go to sleep." 8:00 a.m. 30.Aug.99.PDThttp://www.wired.com/news/news/culture/story/21487.html
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Comment #1 posted by Orlando Papei on October 26, 2000 at 10:41:54 PT:
family genealogy research (Maria Papei)
I wouldo like to know who Maria Papei is and if she is a resident in (Berlin) or a tourist visiting Germany. Is it possible to get in touch with the journalist who interviewed her to find out more.I'm writing a book on my family genealogy and would like to know if she ia a distant relative of mine, or married to an Italian residing in Germany.Any help would be greatly appreciated since my research has already taken 15 years time...           Orlando Papei
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