Australian cannabis activists protest THC ban for drivers

A group of Australian cannabis activists took to the streets of Sydney in a motorcade of military vehicles to protest the failed war on drugs and policies that penalize drivers for having THC in their systems. Collectively known as Who Are We Hurting? Army, the group of activists staged their protest on April 20th, the high holiday of the global cannabis community. The contingent of military vehicles, including a tank, drove past the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbor Bridge, two well-known landmarks in the Australian city that served as the backdrop for a protest on April 20, 2022, which used cannabis images to be projected onto structures.

Organizers of last year’s 4/20 protests, Alec Zammitt and Will Stolk, have been criminally charged over their actions under a law banning the projection of commercial images onto the Sydney Opera House. The couple is on bail pending prosecution for their actions, which they say constitute a constitutionally protected protest against Australia’s cannabis ban.

For this year’s demonstration, the group of activists secured a fleet of armored military vehicles, which drove through Sydney to deliver facts about cannabis direct to Australian news outlets. The protest also aimed to highlight the failure of the Australian state of New South Wales’ cannabis policy, which penalizes drivers who have THC in their systems. Under the law, drivers found to have THC in their systems face criminal penalties, including driver’s license suspension or suspension, large fines and jail time. Zammitt said the military-style action was aimed at highlighting the damaging policies of the failed War on Drugs.

“This visual statement aims to highlight the need for a new approach to drug driving policy that prioritizes harm reduction and treatment over punishment and incarceration,” Zammitt said in a statement to the press.

The campaigners note that a 2019 study by the University of Sydney’s Lambert Initiative, a research program investigating the medicinal potential of cannabis, found that while drivers under the influence of high-potency THC products exhibited more lane changes, they did show other actions that drunk drivers were a little safer . Drunk drivers tended to “leave a bigger gap between them and the car in front” and showed “no tendency to speed,” according to the study.

“Driving on THC shouldn’t make you an enemy,” added Zammitt. “Driving laws need to be changed. Cannabis patients deserve the same bandwidth.”

The protest was also intended to educate the public about the benefits of cannabis legalization, including greater personal freedom and the potential for new revenue streams for public services that could come with the regulation and taxation of commercial cannabis production and sales.

“We want to publicize the cannabis debate in Australia and ask the government who would be harmed by an amnesty?” said cannabis activist Stolk. “We also want to educate the Australian taxpayer about the benefits of fully legalizing cannabis in Australia. There is a huge amount of money that will flow into the Australian government coffers for use in healthcare, schools and road transport from the tax deducted from legalized cannabis.”

“We also want to highlight the fact that the 75+ year war on drugs has not worked and has cost taxpayers billions of dollars fighting a war that can and will never be won,” Stolk continued.

The cannabis policy reform movement in Australia recently received a new boost when the Legalize Cannabis NSW party elected Jeremy Buckingham as its first MP. Buckingham, a former Green Party member, said he will spend much of his time in office campaigning for cannabis legalization and related policy reforms.

“I am honored to have been elected the first MP for the Legalize Cannabis NSW party,” he said in a statement. “I am committed to advancing the cause of drug law reform and working towards a more just and just society. I look forward to working with my colleagues in Parliament and the wider community to make this vision a reality.”