An organization wanting to legalize marijuana will be handing out thousands of free joints on Inauguration Day in Washington, D.C.
The goal of the group, DCMJ, is to send the just-sworn in Donald Trump a message on his first day in office.
"This protest is necessary because his advisors and next attorney general are not friendly to legalize marijuana at all. I’m not going to wait for them to take away our rights and then organize a protest when half of our friends are sitting in jail. It’s time to be proactive now," said DCMJ's founder, Adam Eidinger.
In 2014, District of Columbia voters approved Initiative 71, which Eidinger proposed and publicized, allowing people in D.C. to possess and give away a small amount of marijuana within the district, though public selling and smoking remains prohibited.
On the federal level, it’s against the law to have weed on federal property, including the National Mall where thousands will watch the inauguration. And Trump's attorney general nominee, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), is a steadfast supporter of keeping pot illegal.
But organizers of the 4,200-joint protest hope it will be a way to fire up a new conversation on legalizing marijuana at the federal level, given the growing number of states already taking action.
"If you are gonna go to [Trump's] speech and you’re going to be on the National Mall, and you feel federal marijuana laws should change, then you should light up and smoke in protest. The city should smell like marijuana," Eidinger said.
But does Eidinger think the new president, who doesn't even drink alcohol, will be receptive to DCMJ's message?
"Donald Trump respects people who fight so we’re standing up. We have to stand up and be counted and we have to show pride in who we are. We can’t be afraid. We have to force tolerance from the Trump administration so we’re forcing tolerance. I think that’s what it’s all about," said Eidinger.
