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420 (cannabis culture)

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Santa Cruz 4/20 celebration at Porter Meadow on UCSC campus in 2007

4:20 or 4/20 (pronounced four-twenty) refers to consumption of cannabis and, by extension, a way to identify oneself with cannabis drug subculture.

Origins

Statue of Louis Pasteur, at San Rafael High School.

The origin of the term stems from a story about a group of teenagers at San Rafael High School in San Rafael, California, United States in 1971.[1][2] The teens would meet after school at 4:20 p.m. to smoke marijuana at the Louis Pasteur statue.

Observances

April 20 ("4/20" in U.S. date notation) has evolved into a counterculture holiday, where people gather to celebrate and consume cannabis.[3][4] In some locations this celebration coincides with Earth Week.[5][6][7]

University of Colorado, Boulder

A large celebration is held every year on the University of Colorado's Boulder campus, with attendance reaching more than 10,000 in 2008.[2][8] University police have tried various methods to prevent the gathering, including photographing students participating in the event,[9] but the crowd has grown every year.[8]

On April 15, 2009, the Office of the Chancellor sent an e-mail to all CU students regarding the 2009 celebration of 4/20:

As another April 20 approaches, we are faced with concerns from students, parents, alumni, Regents, and community members about a repeat of last year's 4/20 "event."
Let us start by saying that we share their concerns. A gathering of thousands on our campus for the sole purpose of engaging in unlawful activity is contrary to everything that CU-Boulder stands for and is in no way condoned. This event only serves to harm the reputation of this great university and is comprised in large part of individuals with no investment in the university at all.
The increasingly large crowds that have gathered in recent years present safety risks for participants, whether students or people not affiliated with the campus. This activity violates a number of campus regulations designed to provide for the well-being of our campus and neighboring community.
On April 20, 2009, we hope that you will choose not to participate in unlawful activity that debases the reputation of your University and degree, and will encourage your fellow Buffs to act with pride and remember who they really are -- part of a dynamic environment of teaching, research, learning, and service, nationally recognized for its unique and stellar academic programs, outstanding faculty, and proud students and alumni.

The warning was unheeded, as many people still gathered to celebrate the holiday.

New Zealand

In Dunedin, New Zealand, students at the University of Otago and other cannabis law reform activists meet under a walnut tree on the Otago University Union Lawn on Wednesdays and Fridays at 4:20pm to openly smoke cannabis in public in what they consider an act of protest. In 2008 a member of the Dunedin group was arrested and others were issued trespass notices for allegedly smoking cannabis at one of the regular 4:20pm protest meetings.[10][11]

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.snopes.com/language/stories/420.asp
  2. ^ a b "Marijuana Advocates Point to Signs of Change". New York Times. April 19, 2009. Retrieved 2009-04-20. Mr. Hager said the significance of April 20 dates to a ritual begun in the early 1970s in which a group of Northern California teenagers smoked marijuana every day at 4:20 p.m. Word of the ritual spread and expanded to a yearly event in various places. Soon, marijuana aficionados were using "420" as a code for smoking and using it as a sign-off on flyers for concerts where the drug would be plentiful. In recent years, the April 20 events have become so widespread that several colleges have urged students to just say no. At the University of Colorado, Boulder, where thousands of students regularly use the day to light up in the quad, administrators sent an e-mail message this month pleading with students not to "participate in unlawful activity that debases the reputation of your university and degree." {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  3. ^ Thousands at UCSC burn one to mark cannabis holiday
  4. ^ 420 at UCSC "Gets Bigger Every Year"
  5. ^ Earth Week in Guam
  6. ^ Earth Week in San Diego
  7. ^ Earth Week in Victora, BC
  8. ^ a b CU's 4/20 pot smoke-out draws crowd of 10,000 : CU News
  9. ^ Marijuana: University of Colorado Posts Pics of Students at Pot Rally, Offers Reward for Naming Them
  10. ^ Porteous, Debbie (12 June 2008). "Police swoop on cannabis protest". Otago Daily Times. Retrieved 2009-03-31.
  11. ^ "420 Protest". Channel 9 News Dunedin. February 22, 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-07. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)


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