Pinch
Well-Known Member
"The problem with a lot of young people is that they smoke pot first and maybe develop a discipline over time," said Marc Emery, who asked me if I wanted to get high off the giant bong he was smoking in his small office below the B.C. Marijuana Party store. "I didn't smoke pot until I was 22," he continued, which was well after Emery developed a discipline for the work that has made him a wanted man.
At 17, Emery opened City Lights Bookstore in London, Ontario. His activism started shortly after. He was thrown in jail for ignoring Ontario's ban on Sunday shopping hours and was convicted for selling 2 Live Crew videos - which were deemed obscene - and for taking stands on other issues as well. But it's Emery's political activism concerning marijuana that has garnered him international notoriety and the nickname the "Prince of Pot."
Perhaps it was his first experience with the drug that led him to put so much money and effort into legalizing the substance, while simultaneously putting himself at risk of arrest and persecution.
During the winter solstice of 1980, Emery had just fallen in love with Sandra Chrysler. They were making out and he felt the need to make a move, but before he had the chance, she asked if he wanted to smoke a joint. They did and suddenly, everything was "amazing." The moon, the silence of the night and the cold in his fingers; it was all sensational. Then he went down on her.
Planting seeds
In the early '90s, Emery encouraged people to plant marijuana in the gardens of police officers, politicians and other authority figures and began selling publications promoting marijuana use, which were banned in Canada at the time. He hoped to get arrested for doing so, but it was surprisingly difficult. Nevertheless, this was the beginning of Emery's mission to have marijuana legalized.
"Plant the seeds of freedom. Overgrow the government," has become a catch phrase for Emery (and a way to sign autographs). In Cannabis Culture magazine, Emery writes that "inherent in that beautiful phrase are so many ideals and glories of a co-operative, peaceful society."
After a short period of living in Asia, Emery moved to Vancouver in 1994 and opened Hemp BC. Police raided the store numerous times, as pot paraphernalia and publications were still prohibited in Canada.
The law was overturned in 1995 and in the spring of that year, the first issue of Cannabis Canada (later renamed Cannabis Culture) was released, partially subsidized by Emery through Hemp BC. Today, Emery is the magazine's publisher and editor.
Cannabis Culture is just part of the subversive empire that includes Pot.TV, the B.C. Marijuana Party and the now out-of-business Marc Emery Direct Seeds - all with the goal of ending marijuana prohibition.
"The whole idea of the project was to raise millions of dollars and to fund a revolution ( . . . . ) We paid for rallies everywhere - in London, Paris. We had posters printed up in seven languages for rallies all around the world. We paid for the Supreme Court hearing in 2003 that tried to legalize pot. We paid for ballot initiatives in Alaska and Arizona, Nevada, Washington D.C. Totally subversive stuff," Emery says. And the seed business was the source of funding for all of it.
Emery went on to say, "I gave money to (2004 U.S. presidential candidate) Dennis Kucinich and just gave it to some Americans to give to him. It's easy to launder money -if that's what laundering is, helping participate in the democratic process. And that's what kills me. The only laundering I ever did (was give money) clearly and openly and nobody ever didn't take the money. Four million dollars I gave away and nobody ever said no."
With the growth of the movement, Emery's seeds of a marijuana revolution were blooming and the American Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) took notice.
Drug kingpin or politically persecuted?
On July 29, 2005, Emery was arrested while in Halifax for extradition to the U.S. for allegations of trafficking in marijuana seeds, conspiracy to produce marijuana and money laundering.
Back in Vancouver, Michelle Rainey and Greg Williams, Emery's fellow activists, were also arrested and the DEA conducted a search of the B.C. Marijuana Party bookstore looking for business records, seeds and anything else that could be incriminating.
According to Emery, they found very little, and certainly nothing that one would expect to find in the possession of a drug dealer.
Although he had been selling marijuana seeds in Canada for years (even claiming all of his income as a seed vendor on his income tax returns) and had been charged twice for doing so, the penalty for the crime was a mere fine.
In contrast, if he is extradited to the U.S. under "Drug Kingpin" legislation (selling 60,000 or more seeds, plants or kilograms of marijuana), Emery could receive 17 to 21 years without probation, plus a minimum of 10 years for money laundering.
In 2003, the Vancouver Police Department investigated Emery's seed business and took their findings to the Crown Attorney of Canada. No charges were laid. According to Emery, his file was turned over to the DEA later that year and they continued the investigation.
In May 2005, a Seattle jury indicted Emery based on the evidence provided by the DEA. Irwin Cotler, Canada's attorney general, allowed the arrest because of the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty that Canada has with the States.
Although there are numerous other seed vendors in Canada who sell their product to U.S. citizens in the same manner that Emery did, there are overarching political implications of Emery's arrest. Emery admits to have been taunting the DEA with his activism efforts.
When John Walters, National Drug Control Policy director or "drug czar" for the U.S. government, was speaking in Vancouver at the Board of Trade in 2002, Emery paid for a table of 10 marijuana activists to be present. At the meeting, Walters gave a speech on marijuana.
"Every time he says a lie about marijuana, which is frequently, we say, ‘Bullshit, liar, jailor, incarcerator' and eventually he cracks and gets really upset and he has a terrible meeting. He's humiliated; he's pissed off and he wants to strangle my fucking neck," Emery said.
The Vancouver Police Department was also at the Board of Trade meeting and Emery claims that it was one month later that they began their investigation into his seed business.
Further evidence that the DEA investigation is politically motivated was the statement made by DEA administrator Karen P. Tandy in a press release on the day of Emery's arrest. She stated: "Today's DEA arrest of Marc Scott Emery, publisher of Cannabis Culture magazine and the founder of a marijuana legalization group, is a significant blow not only to the marijuana trafficking trade in the U.S. and Canada, but also to the marijuana legalization movement ( . . . ) Drug legalization lobbyists now have one less pot of money to rely on."
A statement provided by Libby Davies, the NDP MP for Vancouver East, argued: "We should recognize that the arrests of these Canadian citizens is more related to political pressure on Canada to co-operate with the U.S. War on Drugs than on any harm that has been created by the actions of these individuals."
Now what happens?
Marc Emery Direct Seeds has been put out of business, as selling seeds would violate Emery's bail conditions. As a result, Emery is currently relying on donations from supporters to pay for legal fees, which are expected to be rather high.
But the BC3 (as Emery, Rainy and Williams are often referred to) are asking for help in other ways as well. T-shirts have been made, petitions are being passed around and supporters are being asked to contact local politicians as well as the justice minister of Canada.
On July 23, 2006, there was a change to the extradition laws made by the Supreme Court of Canada that may prove fortuitous for the BC3. Under the new legislation, the judge presiding over the case must decide if the court would find the accused guilty in Canada before handing them over to the state requesting extradition.
Since Canada decided against charging Emery for selling seeds in the past, and since this is the premise of the charge in the U.S., it may cause problems for the DEA's case.
This September, a court date will be set for the BC3's extradition hearing, which is expected to occur some time in May.
What if he goes to jail?
When asked what will happen to his marijuana activism and to his businesses if he is incarcerated, Emery responded, "If I do a good job before then, then everything should go on as normal. Without my classic presence perhaps, but ( . . . ) the job of a leader is not to create followers, but to create more leaders and secondly, to leave things so that people understand what their job is and make sure that the right people are behind it."
He expects his ventures - Pot.TV, Cannabis Culture, the store and the vapour lounge - to continue and perhaps for new entities to form.
"And I hope to be still active from jail. I like a good confrontation, so if they put me in solitary and I go buggy or something like that then maybe people can have protests.
Written by Debby Reis, Canadian University Press
Excalibur Publications
At 17, Emery opened City Lights Bookstore in London, Ontario. His activism started shortly after. He was thrown in jail for ignoring Ontario's ban on Sunday shopping hours and was convicted for selling 2 Live Crew videos - which were deemed obscene - and for taking stands on other issues as well. But it's Emery's political activism concerning marijuana that has garnered him international notoriety and the nickname the "Prince of Pot."
Perhaps it was his first experience with the drug that led him to put so much money and effort into legalizing the substance, while simultaneously putting himself at risk of arrest and persecution.
During the winter solstice of 1980, Emery had just fallen in love with Sandra Chrysler. They were making out and he felt the need to make a move, but before he had the chance, she asked if he wanted to smoke a joint. They did and suddenly, everything was "amazing." The moon, the silence of the night and the cold in his fingers; it was all sensational. Then he went down on her.
Planting seeds
In the early '90s, Emery encouraged people to plant marijuana in the gardens of police officers, politicians and other authority figures and began selling publications promoting marijuana use, which were banned in Canada at the time. He hoped to get arrested for doing so, but it was surprisingly difficult. Nevertheless, this was the beginning of Emery's mission to have marijuana legalized.
"Plant the seeds of freedom. Overgrow the government," has become a catch phrase for Emery (and a way to sign autographs). In Cannabis Culture magazine, Emery writes that "inherent in that beautiful phrase are so many ideals and glories of a co-operative, peaceful society."
After a short period of living in Asia, Emery moved to Vancouver in 1994 and opened Hemp BC. Police raided the store numerous times, as pot paraphernalia and publications were still prohibited in Canada.
The law was overturned in 1995 and in the spring of that year, the first issue of Cannabis Canada (later renamed Cannabis Culture) was released, partially subsidized by Emery through Hemp BC. Today, Emery is the magazine's publisher and editor.
Cannabis Culture is just part of the subversive empire that includes Pot.TV, the B.C. Marijuana Party and the now out-of-business Marc Emery Direct Seeds - all with the goal of ending marijuana prohibition.
"The whole idea of the project was to raise millions of dollars and to fund a revolution ( . . . . ) We paid for rallies everywhere - in London, Paris. We had posters printed up in seven languages for rallies all around the world. We paid for the Supreme Court hearing in 2003 that tried to legalize pot. We paid for ballot initiatives in Alaska and Arizona, Nevada, Washington D.C. Totally subversive stuff," Emery says. And the seed business was the source of funding for all of it.
Emery went on to say, "I gave money to (2004 U.S. presidential candidate) Dennis Kucinich and just gave it to some Americans to give to him. It's easy to launder money -if that's what laundering is, helping participate in the democratic process. And that's what kills me. The only laundering I ever did (was give money) clearly and openly and nobody ever didn't take the money. Four million dollars I gave away and nobody ever said no."
With the growth of the movement, Emery's seeds of a marijuana revolution were blooming and the American Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) took notice.
Drug kingpin or politically persecuted?
On July 29, 2005, Emery was arrested while in Halifax for extradition to the U.S. for allegations of trafficking in marijuana seeds, conspiracy to produce marijuana and money laundering.
Back in Vancouver, Michelle Rainey and Greg Williams, Emery's fellow activists, were also arrested and the DEA conducted a search of the B.C. Marijuana Party bookstore looking for business records, seeds and anything else that could be incriminating.
According to Emery, they found very little, and certainly nothing that one would expect to find in the possession of a drug dealer.
Although he had been selling marijuana seeds in Canada for years (even claiming all of his income as a seed vendor on his income tax returns) and had been charged twice for doing so, the penalty for the crime was a mere fine.
In contrast, if he is extradited to the U.S. under "Drug Kingpin" legislation (selling 60,000 or more seeds, plants or kilograms of marijuana), Emery could receive 17 to 21 years without probation, plus a minimum of 10 years for money laundering.
In 2003, the Vancouver Police Department investigated Emery's seed business and took their findings to the Crown Attorney of Canada. No charges were laid. According to Emery, his file was turned over to the DEA later that year and they continued the investigation.
In May 2005, a Seattle jury indicted Emery based on the evidence provided by the DEA. Irwin Cotler, Canada's attorney general, allowed the arrest because of the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty that Canada has with the States.
Although there are numerous other seed vendors in Canada who sell their product to U.S. citizens in the same manner that Emery did, there are overarching political implications of Emery's arrest. Emery admits to have been taunting the DEA with his activism efforts.
When John Walters, National Drug Control Policy director or "drug czar" for the U.S. government, was speaking in Vancouver at the Board of Trade in 2002, Emery paid for a table of 10 marijuana activists to be present. At the meeting, Walters gave a speech on marijuana.
"Every time he says a lie about marijuana, which is frequently, we say, ‘Bullshit, liar, jailor, incarcerator' and eventually he cracks and gets really upset and he has a terrible meeting. He's humiliated; he's pissed off and he wants to strangle my fucking neck," Emery said.
The Vancouver Police Department was also at the Board of Trade meeting and Emery claims that it was one month later that they began their investigation into his seed business.
Further evidence that the DEA investigation is politically motivated was the statement made by DEA administrator Karen P. Tandy in a press release on the day of Emery's arrest. She stated: "Today's DEA arrest of Marc Scott Emery, publisher of Cannabis Culture magazine and the founder of a marijuana legalization group, is a significant blow not only to the marijuana trafficking trade in the U.S. and Canada, but also to the marijuana legalization movement ( . . . ) Drug legalization lobbyists now have one less pot of money to rely on."
A statement provided by Libby Davies, the NDP MP for Vancouver East, argued: "We should recognize that the arrests of these Canadian citizens is more related to political pressure on Canada to co-operate with the U.S. War on Drugs than on any harm that has been created by the actions of these individuals."
Now what happens?
Marc Emery Direct Seeds has been put out of business, as selling seeds would violate Emery's bail conditions. As a result, Emery is currently relying on donations from supporters to pay for legal fees, which are expected to be rather high.
But the BC3 (as Emery, Rainy and Williams are often referred to) are asking for help in other ways as well. T-shirts have been made, petitions are being passed around and supporters are being asked to contact local politicians as well as the justice minister of Canada.
On July 23, 2006, there was a change to the extradition laws made by the Supreme Court of Canada that may prove fortuitous for the BC3. Under the new legislation, the judge presiding over the case must decide if the court would find the accused guilty in Canada before handing them over to the state requesting extradition.
Since Canada decided against charging Emery for selling seeds in the past, and since this is the premise of the charge in the U.S., it may cause problems for the DEA's case.
This September, a court date will be set for the BC3's extradition hearing, which is expected to occur some time in May.
What if he goes to jail?
When asked what will happen to his marijuana activism and to his businesses if he is incarcerated, Emery responded, "If I do a good job before then, then everything should go on as normal. Without my classic presence perhaps, but ( . . . ) the job of a leader is not to create followers, but to create more leaders and secondly, to leave things so that people understand what their job is and make sure that the right people are behind it."
He expects his ventures - Pot.TV, Cannabis Culture, the store and the vapour lounge - to continue and perhaps for new entities to form.
"And I hope to be still active from jail. I like a good confrontation, so if they put me in solitary and I go buggy or something like that then maybe people can have protests.
Written by Debby Reis, Canadian University Press
Excalibur Publications
