420 event up in smoke

While bigger cities like Vancouver and Toronto held large 420 rallies Wednesday to celebrate cannabis culture and protest the plant’s prohibition, the same couldn’t be said about Kelowna.

In past years, people have gathered near the Sails in downtown Kelowna to light up together, but the area was empty this year.

“I’m disappointed, I just thought there’d be more people out in support of legalization,” said one woman near the Sails.

Some marijuana enthusiasts could be found at locally-dubbed ‘Mushroom Beach’ Wednesday afternoon, but even there, the community atmosphere many associate pot rallies with was in short supply.

“I’m just disappointed that everyone’s in their own little groups. It should be a community thing, we wouldn’t roll this if it was just for yourself,” said one man, pointing to an oversized joint.

One woman said some of her friends had travelled to Vancouver to participate in the much larger rally there, while another suggested people in Kelowna are just not that organized. 

A 420 rally in Penticton had similar attendance issues, with roughly 25 people gathering in the park near the courthouse.

Participant J.T. said he was there because he felt it was his duty as a member of the public to protest unjust laws and also to feel a sense of community.

Joe Brockbank said he's been a chronic user for years, to relieve the pain from arthritis in his spine.

Photo: Jennifer Zielinski