HEMPFEST LIGHTS UP THE WATERFRONT

Seattle Abuzz With Talk Of Legalizing Pot

SEATTLE -- Turn anywhere at Seattle's 10th annual Hempfest and you could
hear talk of marijuana in some form.

Hemp products -- in everything from granola to cat food to clothes -- were
on display. Drug paraphernalia booths were set up between stands of
tie-dyed clothes and silver jewelry. Many in the crowd wore leis of silk
marijuana leaves.

Hempfest even featured a car that runs on fuel made of hemp seed oil.

The distinctive odor of pot wafted through the air as tens of thousands
strolled through Myrtle Edwards Park on the Seattle waterfront.

The two-day Hempfest -- which featured various speakers, including actor
Woody Harrelson -- aims to educate the public that adults who use marijuana
responsibly do not need to go to jail, Dominic Holden, director of
Hempfest, said Sunday.

"Most marijuana smokers, like the rest of America, work hard, pay taxes,
raise families, and don't deserve to be treated like criminals," said the
24-year-old Seattle resident.

Holden called for treatment, job training and accurate education about
drugs as an alternative to the system of jailing nonviolent offenders
convicted of possession of marijuana.

Holden also is the director of Seattle city Initiative 73, which would make
the crime of marijuana possession the lowest priority -- below even
jaywalking -- for police officers and prosecutors. I-73 needs 19,000
signatures to get on Seattle's ballot in 2002.

Holden estimated that more than 90,000 people had attended the celebration
by Sunday morning. The police department, which was closely monitoring the
crowd with officers on horseback and bicycles, declined to give an estimate.