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| Pro-Marijuana Group Sues 3 Rivers Festival |
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Posted by CN Staff on April 16, 2004 at 08:28:14 PT By John C. Drake, Staff Writer Source: The State 
A group that advocates legalizing marijuana has sued the 3 Rivers Music Festival and city of Columbia officials, saying they are restricting the group from advocating its cause at this weekend’s festival.The group wants a federal judge to force festival organizers to drop a policy prohibiting non-profit organizations from passing out literature away from their assigned booths or tents. “I refuse to submit to conditional free speech,” said Henry Koch, president of the Midlands chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. The lawsuit contends the policy — which is new this year — is an unconstitutional prior restraint on free speech. But festival organizers and city officials disagree. “Until last year with NORML, no one had ever left their booth,” said Virginia Bedford, festival president. “We had complaints from people who said they were aggressively approached. “This was a way that they could have a presence at the festival and people would not be approached unsolicited.” But officials with the ACLU, whose lawyers drafted the lawsuit, said the policy is unconstitutional because it limits only not-for-profit groups and because the festival is being held in a public place. “Essentially, they’ve made it more restrictive for political speech than for commercial speech,” said Denyse Williams, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of South Carolina. Koch said last year was NORML’s first at 3 Rivers, and that members handed out about 6,000 pieces of literature. “The response from the city was overwhelmingly positive,” he said. Koch insists his group does not advocate breaking the law, and does not distribute drugs or drug paraphernalia. Instead, he said, it advocates changes in the law. Columbia Mayor Bob Coble, who sits on the 3 Rivers Music and Heritage Foundation board, said the policy is reasonable. “You have the right to talk to anyone, and you have the right to distribute material from your booth,” said Coble, who added that he disagrees with the group’s ideology. Also named in the suit are Columbia City Manager Charles Austin and W. Lee Catoe, director of the S.C. Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services. Austin declined to comment, and Catoe did not immediately return a phone call to his office. A hearing has been scheduled for 11 a.m. today in U.S. District Court. The festival opens at 6 tonight. Originally the festival sought to keep NORML from even having a booth there, but it relented after the ACLU complained. Note: NORML claims festival rules restrict organization’s free speech rights. Staff writer Otis R. Taylor Jr. contributed to this story. Source: State, The (SC) Related Articles & Web Sites: 3 Rivers Music Festival Marijuana Reform Group Wins Booth 3 Rivers To Allow Pro-Marijuana Booth at Festival Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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| Comment #6 posted by FoM on April 16, 2004 at 21:30:18 PT |
| Did you mean the same chapter of NORML? If you did I'm sure they are the same. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #5 posted by FoM on April 16, 2004 at 21:25:57 PT |
| You must have missed it. It was in the related articles and web site in the article. Here it is. Marijuana Reform Group Wins Booth: http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18656.shtml [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #4 posted by jose melendez on April 16, 2004 at 21:15:50 PT |
| http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v04/n584/a08.html?397 [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #3 posted by FoM on April 16, 2004 at 17:47:38 PT |
| Have a great time and tell us all about it when you get back! I hope it is very successful! I didn't see Montel but I like John Stossel and how he looks at the drug war. http://www.midlands-norml.org/default.asp [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #2 posted by breeze on April 16, 2004 at 17:36:11 PT |
| But I am going just to support the Midlands NORML group. By the way, did anyone check out Montel Williams today? John Stossel, the "give me a break!" reporter who has done various expose material (including the failed drug war a few years back) was on Montel's show basically doing an interview and pushing his new book. He came right out and said that the WOD is a waste of time, money, and human life- to paraphrase. He recieved a loud round of applause- it visibly shocked him to hear that most of the audience was in agreement with him!! I didn't get the name of his new book, but I am definitely going to buy it. This is twice that I have seen him go against the facism of the War on Americans and freedom- otherwise propagandized as the WAR ON DRUGS. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by TroutMask on April 16, 2004 at 08:54:42 PT |
| But I couldn't keep living there. If you're in the area for this festival be sure and check out Keller Williams who will be playing. Oh... Marijuana! -TM [ Post Comment ] |
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