Tenth Annual Olympia Hempfest

I attended the Tenth Annual Olympia Hempfest on Saturday, July 27, 2013, at beautiful Heritage Park, which sits in the shadow of the Washington State Capitol Building. I was excited to be invited to speak there because it would be the first hemp festival in Washington since legalization, and I wanted to taste that freedom!

In the weeks that led up to the fest, the city of Tacoma decided to shut down the medical cannabis farmers’ market that was well established there, and safe access points in Seattle, Tacoma and Olympia, aka: dispensaries, were raided by the DEA. Somehow, after that, the taste of freedom I was hoping for became a bitter pill to swallow. I had to think about the possibility that there would be a large police presence at the event.

For the first time in my activist career, I had a smidge of paranoia about what could happen in Washington. But, I am no weenie, and I made a commitment to be there. So, I set off on the beautiful two-hour drive from Portland to Olympia.

I was surprised to find a place to park that was close to the venue. But, I thought that it was just good parking karma. I arrived at about 3:00 pm, and I expected a crowd to be waiting for 4:20 pm. There were people walking along the downtown streets to the park, but it wasn’t crowded. As a Seattle Hempfest and Portland Hempstalk veteran, I thought this was weird.

The vendors were there with an abundance of glassware and vaporizers. There was jewelry, a variety of wellness providers, tie-dyes and everything you would expect at a great hempfest. NORML was there; Real Legalization was there with petitions. The music was killer. The tent backstage was open to everybody. They had medicated and non-medicated food and treats and plenty of dabs for us all.

I was honored to be the first speaker after Justin James Bridges‘ set celebrated 4:20. I stepped up to the microphone, took a deep breath and looked up to begin my speech. The small crowd was mighty and I caught their enthusiasm and was invigorated by their response. I couldn’t help but notice, though, that there was a lot of empty space in that park. I have to be honest, I expected a big crowd for the Tenth Annual Olympia Hempfest and it just wasn’t there.

Later in the day, I got a chance to talk to Jeremy and Kitty from Kit-Teas Medicated Teas and the World Famous Cannabis Farmers Market, the organizers of the event. They stepped in and stepped up to make the festival happen after some political and organizational issues were resolved. So, they did the best they could with what they had. Rifts in the cannabis community are not uncommon; I have experienced first hand how they can mess things up. Combined with the fear that spread throughout the state by the raids on law abiding businesses and it’s easy to see why people stayed home. I think they were scared. Olympia Hempfest’s Facebook page has pictures from previous years; they look more like what I expected.

Photo by Komik Singer

Despite the setbacks, Jeremy and Kitty put together a fun weekend that included favorite performers from the cannabis community like the Herbivores and Jay Mack and Big Dub and some serious metal from the Cody Foster Army. The speaker lineup included Vivian McPeak, Don Skakie, Jared Allaway and more Washington cannabis luminaries in addition to a few rabble rousers from Portland and beyond. While I was disappointed by the turn-out, I was thrilled to get a chance to really visit with the people who were there.

My smidge of paranoia was completely unfounded, as it usually is. I did not see one police officer; there were no checkpoints on the way out of town. At 4:20, the smell of civil disobedience filled the air, just like it should have. The speakers were inspirational, and the music had me dancing. I’m going back next year, and I’m staying for both days.

Photo by Komik Singer

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