With DJs pumping out tunes, about 1,000 people gathered in Centennial Square Friday afternoon to smoke cannabis — some as a protest, others as a celebration, some just because they could.
April 20 or 4/20 has become an unofficial international day for cannabis culture. In Victoria, at 4:20 p.m. on Friday, a cloud of smoke went up in Centennial Square.
One fresh-faced woman, using the name Bitty Aleah, said she got off work early in the hopes of showing others “all the friendly faces of cannabis.”
Aleah noted that she is one of a mix of people young and old who support legalization of cannabis, though the age 30-and-under set clearly dominated the crowd.
Smokers openly displayed their cannabis — pot, grass, weed, 420, ganja, medicine — and inhaled it in various ways.
In Vancouver, a more established celebration at Sunset Beach had a crowd gathering long before pot smokers were scheduled to light up at 4:20 p.m.
Vendors also set up their stalls early, selling marijuana, baked edibles, vapourizers and glassware. Vancouver police officers, the fire department, paramedics and security services watched.
Cannabis activist Jodie Emery said people at the gathering have every right to the day-long smoke-in, as long as marijuana users are still being arrested and discriminated against, regardless of the Cannabis Act legislation to legalize marijuana that’s before Parliament. There’s no firm date yet for when marijuana will be legalized.
On Parliament Hill, a haze of marijuana smoke blanketed crowds as pot enthusiasts of all ages gathered below the Peace Tower for the annual cannabis celebration. RCMP estimated the turnout numbered in the thousands.
“What happened here today on Parliament Hill was a gathering of like-minded individuals seeking sensible cannabis legislation,” said Kevin Shae, a 32-year-old recreational marijuana user.
In B.C., some parents questioned why school districts scheduled a professional development day on Friday, allowing school-age children an opportunity to participate or see the event.
One Greater Victoria school district was unapologetic, while a Vancouver-area school was more contrite.
Jim Cambridge, superintendent for the Sooke school district, said the day off was scheduled three years ago. No school official even considered it as a special day for smoking marijuana.
A principal in North Vancouver, however, sent a letter to parents calling it an “oversight that would not be repeated.”
Some people who attended Victoria’s 4/20 event spoke in favour of marijuana legalization and were smoking, but were not willing to have their names published in association with a drug that remains illegal.
Federal Health Minister Ginette Petipas Taylor has said it will likely take provinces two to three months after the federal laws are enacted before retail sales can begin.
Petipas Taylor has said the federal government’s greatest concerns are about the dangers for young people.
In Victoria, city councillors passed bylaws in 2016 establishing rules for storefront cannabis sellers of medical marijuana including special zoning and licences.
Alex Robb, general manager of Trees Island Growers with five branches in Victoria and one in Nanaimo, said Victoria has in been a leader. “Victoria has been a bit ahead of the pack.”
He said he has been watching the Ottawa debate on legalization and hopes laws will change by July. Meanwhile, his stores are preparing to switch away from selling cannabis as a medicine and get into the recreational market.
Robb said 4/20 events kept him busy all day Friday.
“I haven’t even had time to stop and enjoy it.”
— With files from the Canadian Press
