Pictures from the "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" Free Speech Supreme Court Demonstration and Press Conference
UPDATE: Drug War Chronicle feature report now available here online.
DRCNet associate director David Guard attended the "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" free speech demonstration outside the Supreme Court today, and took pictures for the benefit of those of us who couldn't make it there ourselves. Here are some of the highlights:
Students demonstrating at the courthouse:


Ken Starr, counsel for the bad guys:

Former US drug czar Barry McCaffrey (also there for the bad guys):

More demonstration and press conference pictures (click the "read full post" or title link in this post to see the rest if you don't already see them):




(David Guard is second from the right in this one, the others are SSDP'ers.)

Attorney Douglas Kemp Mertz of Juneau, Alaska, representing the plaintiff.

Mary Beth Tinker of Tinker v. Des Moines fame.
I'm not sure who these two people are, and would appreciate if anyone could send us that info:


cut me some slack
Comment posted by David Borden on Tue, 03/20/2007 - 2:43amYou stay up too late, Micah. :)
David Borden, Executive Director
StoptheDrugWar.org: the Drug Reform Coordination Network
Washington, DC
http://stopthedrugwar.org
Why suport this stuff?
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 03/23/2007 - 5:26pmWhat does this really have to do with an honest education of our HS students about Drugs? Turning this into a issue is something I cant back, maybe you should step back and look through the eyes of most parents and educators and see how this hurts our cause. Special Ed CDXX
this is bullsh*t
Comment posted by Anonymous on Tue, 03/20/2007 - 8:42amthis is so gay, you guys are making a big deal out of nothing. I get high about 4-5 times a week. that means absolutely nothing.
Marijuana is good when beheld.
Comment posted by Anonymous on Wed, 06/27/2007 - 1:11amMy purpose is to get zooted and make maps.
students everywhere support
Comment posted by Anonymous on Tue, 03/20/2007 - 10:15amstudents everywhere support Joseph Frederick
bong hits for jesus
Comment posted by Anonymous on Tue, 03/20/2007 - 4:54pmrally cry for free speech anal retentive people stand aside.
missing the mark
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 03/23/2007 - 5:16pmJoseph Frederick, where is he? SSDP this is the kind of BS that keeps people against changeing the War on Drugs. If you want to change the rules in Juno show up and elect a new school board, get this crap out of our courts. Not allowing open honest conversations in class about drugs would be a crime but to blatnly put up a sign just to make the news...
Joe got his but I dont see him there now.
Protect us from the "liberals"
Comment posted by Anonymous on Sat, 03/24/2007 - 4:03amIf ANYONE saves us from the Alaska school bd, it will be Republicans like Souter, Stevens and Alito---the new Bush appointee. Kennedy, the savior of the gays in the sodomy case, and Clinton's second "liberal appointee" Steven Breyer are poised to vote against us. Remember Breyer cast the deciding vote in the outrageous Earls drug testing case that said even the chess club cxould be drug-tested (over the objection of our Az conservative Republican Justice O'Connor). And it is Mr & Ms. Clinton who are trying to put all public school students in UNIFORMS!!! /s/ GARY PETER KLAHR, Phoenix, retired atty and 8 yr former school board member (Phx Union HS District) GaryK57647@aol.com
Yes, it's topical
Comment posted by Anonymous on Fri, 06/15/2007 - 12:39pmYou should be bringing this to people's attention.
It points out the real underlying purpose to the drug war.
It's not about (and never has been about) stopping people from using drugs (that would dry up the black budgets, can't have that).
It's about having a convenient arm to twist.
It's about having an easy club to beat people with.
It used to be so much easier, when there were so many categories to pigeonhole people into.
It got harder when a big chunk (the 'coloreds') got the rest to agree that being black wasn't actually a crime (at least not a hangin' offense like it used to be).
Then the commies got out from under the big thumb.
When the fags got loose, there just wasn't much left. Luckily, we have terrorists with guns, so even if we lose the drug war, we still have the police state mechanisms in place.
Drugs are used as an excuse to roust someone out of bed at four in the morning.
Drugs are used as an excuse to hold someone for 'suspicion'.
And in this case, drugs are the reason that this young man's free speech is being stifled.
And there are apparently a bunch of people reading this who think there's nothing wrong with the mechanism at all.
I think you (those who wouldn't consider this a valid topic) are sickos. You don't see that this kind of behavior (on any topic, for any reason) is unacceptable.
You can't (or shouldn't) stop anyone from saying anything anywhere unless it is some sort of fraud.
A civilized culture sends officers with warrants (and faces) during daylight hours. Fascist states send people with black masks at four am (see Terry Gilliam's 'Brazil' for a terribly prescient view of what was 'the future').
I keep track of things at my web site, writch.com.
Bong Hits 4 Cancer Patients
Comment posted by Anonymous on Mon, 06/25/2007 - 4:40pmI guess the Supreme Court will rule that the slogan Bong Hits 4 Cancer Patients is also not protected free speech guaranteed by our Constitution.
Bong hits for Quincy!
Comment posted by Anonymous on Thu, 03/20/2008 - 2:48pmhere is what i think. marijuana is a drug and should not be legalized! but this has gone to an extreme!!! he had a banner...it was not like he was out front smoking the stuff...so no drugs are bad...but we shouldnt take away freedom of speech!
~Mickey























Tsk tsk
Comment posted by Anonymous on Tue, 03/20/2007 - 12:21amTsk tsk, Dave. The woman with the scarf is not the principal who took the banner down... that's Mary Beth Tinker - as in Tinker v. Des Moines (one of the most influential Supreme Court cases dealing with free speech in schools).
SSDP will have pictures, video, and audio up within the next day.
-Micah