Northern Wisconsin NORML’s free fishing event was fun!

This past weekend we held an event to celebrate Wisconsin’s free fishing weekend.  We had a good time!  The DNR stopped out to see our unique event, which we thought was exciting, and they were just in time to get a great picture of  a supporter from Madison NORML and a fish that he caught (and released).

All in all, I would say it was a success! Several people brought food and beverages for our potluck picnic.  Alex Toast played the guitar, and we met some new friends.  We had a great turnout, considering that there were other free fishing weekend events going on in the surrounding areas.  We had hoped for more people to attend, but I think that’s part of the larger problem that we are going to be addressing in the months to come. Read on…

I think that many people are curious and interested in learning more about NORML and even volunteering, but they may be afraid to be seen out and about in support of Marijuana, Industrial Hemp, or any related issues because of how controversial the topic has been for the last 60 years or so.  That’s very understandable.

However, I think that the time has come for the world to listen and understand that supporting Marijuana or Industrial Hemp is not shameful.  We are talking about a plant which is natural, and which is very safe to use.  Much safer and more nutritious than many of the FDA approved drugs and foods and chemicals that we use on a daily basis!

We need to educate the public so that they learn to separate the truth from the myths, and come to understand how helpful it would be to legalize not only medical marijuana but also industrial hemp.

Did you know that our founding fathers were all Industrial Hemp farmers?  George Washington, Thomas Jefferson… they grew hemp.   It is not shameful to discuss utilizing this wonder plant the way that our founding fathers did.  If hemp paper was good enough to draft the Declaration of Independence on, and to draft the Constitution on (the final documents were made of Parchment – but the drafts were hemp paper) then why isn’t it good enough to grow and use today?

I guess what I’m trying to say is that I think that the majority of people are too afraid to come to a public event which is associated with marijuana or hemp or cannabis because they fear they will be judged, or even that they will get in trouble, or lose their jobs.  The fact that our society is so terrified to be associated with a simple plant is a problem that needs to be fixed.

What I am asking is that you try to overcome that fear in the following months, and attend some of our upcoming events, and volunteer, and try to forward the cause of legalizing marijuana in Wisconsin.  I am also nervous about being associated with such a controversial subject, but I realize that in order to achieve any kind of change, we have to stand up and speak out about what we believe and why we believe it.  We can’t educate others if we are hiding timidly in the shadows.

At any rate, we did have a great turnout considering that we are a brand new organization who is just starting out, and I was really pleased to see so many strangers stop by and check out the signs and literature that was available. We hope to meet many more new supporters and members in the coming months. We could really use your support and assistance to make future events like this possible!

Thanks so much to everyone who showed up and volunteered, donated, supported, socialized, and fished! It was wonderful to meet you!