Despite gray skies and cold winds thousands attend Madison MJ Harvest Festival
MADISON: Thousands of people attended day one of Madison’s two day 40th Annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival Saturday despite chilly winds and mostly gray skies. The festival, which began in 1971, entered its fifth decade this weekend. The festival continues Sunday – attendees will return to Library Mall after 12:30 for live music and speakers before the traditional parade to the State Capitol at the other end of State St. The parade is slated to depart Library Mall at 3:15pm for a 4pm rally on the State St. steps of the Capitol with a concert by the Milwaukee area reggae band Recalcitrant.
On Saturday afternoon, in between a selection of Wisconsin bands featuring a number of musical genres, speaker after speaker denounced marijuana prohibition from every angle. Among those speaking was Jacki Rickert, namesake of the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act (JRMMA), which failed to make it out of committee despite strong legislative support, overwhelming public support and an 8-hour public hearing in Dec. 2009. The legislator who stopped the JRMMA in its tracks, State Sen. Julie Lassa (D-Milladore), who joined the Senate Health committee Republicans in opposing the bill and killing it in committee was a frequent topic.
