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- Hundreds of people turned up for the first official Durham Cannabis Club 420 event
- The successful event was a collaboration effort by Wear Valley Cannabis club, Durham City Cannabis Club, Tyneside Cannabis club and Durham Cannabis collective
- There were speakers, stalls and cannabis information available for event attendees
- There was no police presence
- Professor Mike Barnes and Trev Coleman gave speeches on the importance of medicinal cannabis
While the national media’s attention may have been exclusively focused on London’s Hyde Park 420 event, which attracted thousands of cannabis enthusiasts and campaigners, hundreds of people attended another 420 event (yes, there are other 420 events outside London).
Tucked away behind the city’s cricket club, next to an idyllic canal, the cannabis clubs of the North East gathered on 420, the world-famous day where everyone stops to take a toke and chill.
Cannabis Clubs from the area, including Durham City Cannabis Club and Teesside Cannabis Club, set up stalls packed with leaflets containing information on cannabis, from how to protect yourself against the law and cannabis’ medicinal uses.
Vendors from all around the UK displayed impressive glassware, including intricate dab rigs and beautiful bongs.
Having never been exposed to dabbing other than on the internet, the craze has seen a little pointless. Since ripping my first dab at Durham 420, I’m definitely converted! The flavour alone, strong lemon, blew my mind. Chilling in the sun in silence for an hour was the biggest indicator that dabs are worth the hype, cheers Teeside Cannabis Club!
Aside from the recreational side of cannabis, Durham’s 420 had a heavy focus on the medicinal side of cannabis. The passion was evident in how the guys from these clubs spoke to people with medicinal needs, such as MS sufferers and cancer patients, teaching them about how cannabis can help them, even if it’s just to ease the pain or reduce nausea from chemotherapy.
Unfortunately, some of the speakers and artists had to drop out, but Professor Mike Barnes, a Professor of neurology at Newcastle University, gave a speech on the many, many medicinal uses of cannabis:
“No one in their right mind can say that cannabis doesn’t help. There is very solid scientific evidence.
“What the critics don’t realise is that everyone is producing cannabinoids in their own brain. There’s a natural system called the endocannabinoid system, which produces your own brain cannabinoids.
“All cannabis, the natural plant, is doing, is supplementing, or adding, to the cannabinoids in our own brains.”
Despite there being hundreds of people, the clubs worked together to ensure that the public space they had used to host their event was left in the state that they found it.
Obviously, it’s harder to control thousands of people compared to hundreds (especially when they’re Southern ayy!), but the efforts of the organisers and 420ers should be recognised. An important part of 420 should be to change the public’s negative perception of cannabis, it puts cannabis users in a better light in the public’s eye.
For more info on cannabis events near Durham, follow their Facebook page. Watch our latest video on UK canna-events to find out if there’s anything you can get involved with in your area.
Happy 420 folks!
Miles Casey
Quote from Simpa Carter, chair of Durham City Cannabis Club:
Durham City Cannabis Club is proud to of brought together several of the local clubs to organise Durham’s first annual 420 protest event. Ourselves in conjunction with Durham Cannabis Collective, Tyneside Cannabis club and Wear Valley Cannabis clubs worked tirelessly to ensure the event went off without a hitch and that a great day was had by all.
The event attracted a rather large diverse crowd of young and old, medical, recreational and non-consumers, and was a total success! The weather was perfect and as seems to be a reoccurring theme in the north-east no police presence. Please come and join us at our next event the DCCC Springtime session.
Simpa Carter
You can attend Durham City Cannabis Club Spring time session on 20th May in Durham.