cannabisnews.com: 9 Arrests At Pot Protest





9 Arrests At Pot Protest
Posted by FoM on May 07, 2000 at 18:58:53 PT
By Jeanne Malmgren
Source: St. Petersburg Times
Undercover Officers Move Swiftly To Arrest People Who Police Said Were Smoking Marijuana Publicly.A pro-marijuana rally erupted into a confrontation between police and demonstrators Saturday afternoon in front of the federal courthouse in downtown Tampa. 
Nine people were arrested, one after a scuffle in which Tampa police officers restrained a suspect on the ground, enraging the crowd of protesters.About 60 demonstrators marched several blocks from Lykes Gaslight Park to the courthouse, in an event billed as "Cannabis 2000: The Millennium Marijuana March." Similar rallies were held Saturday in 100 cities worldwide, including St. Petersburg.For two hours the Tampa protesters had been listening to live music and browsing among vendors of hemp goods and tie-dyed clothing at the park, which is next to the Tampa Police Department. Then they marched down Franklin Street, carrying banners and chanting slogans in favor of legalizing marijuana.At the courthouse, they stood on the steps and listened to more speeches. Four Tampa undercover officers were in the crowd. As they moved to arrest people who allegedly were smoking marijuana, squad cars pulled to the curb. The crowd began jeering and moving toward the street. Those arrested included four juveniles and five adults. Most of them were handcuffed without incident. One protester tried to break free and was subdued after a struggle with four officers, during which the protesters shouted angrily."It's never okay to smoke marijuana. That's the law and we're going to enforce it," Tampa Police Sgt. Tom Wolf said later Saturday. As the police cars drove away with the suspects, one of the demonstrators grabbed a megaphone."Anybody know why this happened? And how to keep it from happening?" The crowd bellowed the answer: "Change the law!" Note: MAP Newshawk/Editors John Chase and Steve Heath both had made speeches and participated in TV and radio interviews. They left for the St. Pete MMM before the 'march on the courthouse' began, so saw none of this action. The TV evening news showed only the few seconds at the courthouse just before the arrests. Steve's radio interview will probably run on Monday.Author: Jeanne Malmgren, Staff Writer Linda Gibson Contributed to this Report.MAP Posted-by: Jo-D Tampa, Fla.Published: May 7, 2000Contact: letters sptimes.com Copyright: 2000 St. Petersburg Times News Article Courtesy Of MapInc.http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n614/a02.htmlRelated Articles & Web Sites:Cannabis 2000 National Million Marijuana March http://www.cannabis2000.com/mmm/mmm1_1.htmRally Promotes Marijuana, Hemphttp://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread5645.shtmlHemp Fans Urge Freedom for the Fettered Weed http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread5644.shtml312 Arrested In Pot-March Bust http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread5641.shtmlMarijuana March Unites Advocates http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread5640.shtmlHundreds Call for Legalization of MMJ In Texashttp://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread5637.shtmlLibertarians Speak Against State's Drug Sentencinghttp://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread5636.shtmlPot Advocate Announce Creation of Federal MJ Partyhttp://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread5632.shtmlLegalizing MJ - Medical Pot Sparks Park Rallyhttp://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread5629.shtmlExtravaganja Draws A Crowdhttp://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread5627.shtml 
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Comment #6 posted by LSN on May 08, 2000 at 21:43:34 PT
It's not enough to change the law
It's not enough to change the law. The police state mentality and the victim-victimiser pairing have existed since the break away of Church of England.
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Comment #5 posted by LSN on May 08, 2000 at 21:40:59 PT
Church of England to Slave Trade to MMM
Does it occur to anyone that the break away from Roman Catholic and Slave Trade have anything to do with the police state mentality in US today?
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Comment #4 posted by kaptinemo on May 08, 2000 at 05:51:12 PT:
Morality and the law
"It's never okay to smoke marijuana. That's the law and we're going to enforce it," Tampa Police Sgt. Tom Wolf said later Saturday."40 years ago, Officer Wolf would almost certainly have said that it was never okay for Blacks to drink from water fountains marked "Whites Only"; that, too, was against the law, and he would have cheerfully enforced that law with a billy club. (And yes, all you narks out there, reading this, it really *is* a 'civil rights' issue; a significant portion of the population, at least 70 million, are supposedly criminals because they broke this odious law. In demanding our rights as citizens, we have been hounded, villified, imprisoned, suffered police brutality, even killed. In short, our rights have been trampled. It truly is a case of civil rights denied.) This is why I keep saying: don't waste your breath trying to convince the police of the immorality of their positions. Even the ones with consciences will not stick their necks out; they have too much to lose. It's the legislatures we need to concentrate on. We're on the right track with pursuing legislative/referenda efforts; by attacking us for doing so, the antis must show publicly their privately held bias against true democracy. Mr. Jack Boot then has to explain himself to his employers - you and me - and tell us why we should be treated differently from alcohol and nicotine users. And, given the simplistic statement offered by the nice policeman` above, you can gather that they are not going to impress anyone with their eloquence.
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Comment #3 posted by Kay Lee on May 07, 2000 at 23:40:06 PT:
MMM in St. Petersburg, Florida
Nice weather, nice crowd; no cops except a few undercovers as usual. Maybe 500 participants enjoyed the vending in the park, the music and speeches. At 4:20 the 45 minute march began past the police department and back. Chants included, "If there is no victim, there is no crime. . .Why are two million doing time?" and "No More Drug War." and a paraphrased army drill routine: "I don't know, but I been told Brother Jeb ain't got no soul. We don't know, but we been told, he wants to put us in the hole!"Cheers and thumbs up came amazingly often considering most of our signs and chants were to end the drug war. Many people were getting information for the first time, so thinking we planted lots of seeds.No arrests, no police presence, and the usual congenial crowd of pot smokers and supporters made for a pleasant afternoon. 
MAKING THE WALLS TRANSPARENT
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Comment #2 posted by J Christen-Mitchell on May 07, 2000 at 19:40:45 PT:
Hempnation
A better link.
Hemptopia
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Comment #1 posted by J Christen-Mitchell on May 07, 2000 at 19:38:40 PT:
Media Blackout in St.Louie, Louie
Media Blackout At !st March To The Arch-St.Louis MOMay 6th, 2000 C.E.Downtown St. Louis saw a motley group of 500 supporters gather in support of Cannabis-Hemp-Marijuana Re-Legalization. Incense and the pungent odor of something else helped to creat an anticipatious athmosphere broken only for a while as blue clad civil authorities confronted organizers for permits in what would be the only tense moment all day.Internationally nearly 100 cities in 20 Countrys observed the Millennium Marijuana March. Promised by organizers to be maintained annually until prohibition is repealed, The March To The Arch saw half of that number march at 4:20 towards the Federal Gateway Expansion Memorial and The Gateway Arch. Sidetracked shortly at some media building, the smoky protestors perambled towards the riverfront, the noisome crowd punctuated periodically by usually supportive automobilians.Landing on the steps, after passing by The Arch, the group, mostly made up of young, white males led by old white males, listened appreciatively at the round robin rendered by The Cannabis Commandoes of the Saint Louis Chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. By 5:20, coinkadinkly as young jesus freaks swept into our party, the young and previously disaffected, reached a state of boredom known as "Lets march on the Federal Courthouse." Done.A fine day, I got some sun. No arrests, lotsapot. The 60's back for a few hours, the vibes, the feeling of oneness, once again.Kudos to Cures Not Wars and Dana Beal for a terrific job of giving the start of The Revolution a Date of Orgin, a beginning glimpse of an Hemptopian future, where there will be harmony with nature and each other. Cannabem LiberemusSee ya'll May 5th 2000 Cannabis Era, for The March Two The Arch.Jeff Christen-Mitchell for a Libertarian CongressEND PROHIBITION AGAIN
Hemptopia
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