Global Marijuana March
On June 15, 2011, the eight ministers of Brazil's Supreme Court (STF) that participated in the trial were unanimous in free demonstrations for the legalization of drugs, such as the Marcha da Maconha (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈmaʁʃɐ da mɐˈkõɲɐ], Marijuana Walk) in Brazil, in which they decided that the demonstrations are an exercise of freedom of expression and not incitement to crime, as argued judges who have banned the march in the past.
The discussion of the Marcha da Maconha reached the Supreme Court in June 2009 when the Deputy Attorney General of the Republic Deborah Duprat filed the claim of breach of fundamental precept, ADPF 187.
In the lawsuit, the attorney states that the legal prohibition of the demonstrations in favor of marijuana and other narcotics have been based on misinterpretation of the Criminal Code.
[9][10] Marijuana was brought to Brazil by its African slaves, and with the eugenic positivist intellectual and political status quo of the Western civilization in the early 20th century, its use was deemed as a signal of decadence by its stigmatized use as a recreational drug of the poor, the rural people and the Afro-Brazilian.
Its association with the counterculture and left-wing youths during the highly anti-Communist military dictatorship, initially a strong ally of the United States' government, fortified its negative perceptions both by the authorities and the masses.
One can see and smell people smoking the so-called maconha openly in Brazil's Centre-Southern half as well as in the Northeastern states, and recreational use of cannabis in private became more accepted among large sectors of the middle classes since the early 1990s.
The academic milieu is no exception and, today, a sizeable minority of Brazilian University lecturers, students and researchers smoke marijuana.
[12][18] For the May 2, 2009 event[14] the Toronto Star reported: "Police estimate roughly 12,000 people filled the north lawns of Queen's Park yesterday afternoon, with about 5,000 participating in a 2 p.m. march to decriminalize marijuana.
[22] In France the so-called Marche Mondiale pour le Cannabis is celebrated in Paris, Lyon, Toulouse, Marseille, Rennes, Lille, Saint-Denis-de-la-Réunion, Cognac, and some other minor cities in the country.
This second incident was also covered by the media, resulting in the Dunedin Area Police Commander, Dave Campbell, justifying the fact that no arrests were made with the quote, "We had more important things to do" in the Otago Daily Times.
The 2007 International J-Day in Dunedin featured political speakers and music provided by local DJs and counted 170 people at mid-day.
In the lead up to J-Day 2008, NORML NZ's Maryjane the Cannabus toured 42 towns between Auckland and Dunedin in 42 days for daily law reform rallies.
The march takes places on the first Saturday of may and departs from The Freetown Christiania, walks through central Copenhagen and ends at the city hall square.
