Parliament Hill pot protest meets new bureaucratic hurdles after legalization

OTTAWA — Organizers of the first 4-20 “Weed Day” demonstration on Parliament Hill since Canada legalized recreational marijuana are learning a tough lesson — new freedoms bring great bureaucracy.

Shawn Mac, a program director for 4-20 Ottawa, says his group is encountering more red tape today than on past April 20 protests.

Organizers can’t use the steps to the now-closed Centre Block, which means spectators will need a front row position on the lawn to see or hear.

And they’ve been told to limit musical performers to just two, something Mac says isn’t in the rules of how to hold a public event on the Hill.

New limits on auto access also meant organizers had to haul equipment and material by hand up to the lawn from Wellington Street.

Mac and his fellow organizers were hoping to attract thousands of pro-pot protesters to the Hill on a blustery, overcast holiday weekend.

The Canadian Press

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