“Illegal party, Illegal weed, but today it is legal to smoke here.”
There is this certain kind of feel towards 420, some people feel that it is illegal to talk about and other might feel…well open to talk about it and to share the experience with newcomers. In all fairness, weed culture has no social, racial or class boundaries; I’ll tell you why…
After my experience at Carfax on Saturday, 22 April 2017, I totally get why cannabis culture is such a widely used term. The simple fact of the matter is that all the festival goers behaved in a very civilized cultural manner, not that I expected anything else.
People from all walks of life gathered together in the small, graffiti alleyway in downtown Johannesburg. The alleyway became a place to puff and pass in peace to celebrate 420 which is also known as International Marijuana Day.
The crowd was one of the most diverse I’ve ever seen. This was my 4th D.Day party in a row and somehow it keeps on getting better every year. Moving unusually ‘slow’ between reggae bands and tie-dye clothing stalls, people gathered sharing common interest; from the angry 20-something stoner, to skateboard stoners and let’s not forget about the old-school-hippie-stoners.
The event was hosted by Fields of Green for All (FGA), which is a not-for-profit organisation started by Julian Stobbs and Myrtle Clarke, commonly known as the Dagga Couple. Right before Tidal Waves took the stage, the Dagga Couple shared some word with the fellow stoners that gathered just in time for 4:20.
The crowd was spellbound by the Dagga Couple’s speech, cheering and raising fists as the pair spoke passionately about how thankful they were for everyone that joined and how the cannabis culture is going to grow even more in the near future (now that it has been legalised for private use by the High Court), alas we’ll see about that.
The couple has helped create a network for all the dagga growers, sellers and users countrywide. This growth of the green-movement was made evident when free joints were handed out and the people passing out soil and seeds, you could even donate some cash and get a free hit of ‘Dab’ from one of the many stalls at the event.
Baked in Jozi was probably my favourite stall, selling all the edibles you can think of; chocolate pudding, kush sisters – commonly known as koeksisters with weed in it – and even some coconut or chocolate-chip cookies.
The D.Day event was more than just a festival with a diverse hip-hop and reggae music lineup, it was a festival that made different cultures unite, people dancing together, passing joints and sharing smiles. It is an experience everyone should live to
see. It acts as a way to bring diverse cultures together to stand for something bigger than just the two of us.
