Words on paper are not stopping activists and locals from living like free people in Keene, New Hampshire. Whether it is marijuana consumption on the Commons or a young woman going topless on Main Street, Keene has become the place to challenge unjust, immoral, and simply foolish laws. This has naturally rankled many state and local civil servants. The Keene City Council voted against sending a resolution to the state house begging for marijuana decriminalization legislation–instead individuals on the council were encouraged to send a personal message. The Keene Police Department has shown both professionalism in its dealings with the 420 events and violence though Police Prosecutor Sergeant Eliezer Rivera.
April 13, 2009, was the day that David Ridley, of Grafton, was to be arraigned for videotaping in the second-floor lobby of the Keene City Hall. Sam Dodson was arrested on that date, while videotaping there; his charges changed several times over the following months.
The announced cannabis smoking event went as planned with no intervention from the state. As many as a hundred people showed up at Central Square in Keene to live as free men and women. Many cameras and cigarettes were seen in hands of an upbeat crowd of people. The smell of marijuana wafted in the air for a few moments here and there as I passed through the throng.
In between fits of laughter and cheering, people were heard pointing out the Keene Police cruisers circling the center. Officers did not step upon the center but instead stayed on the street and were seen talking with activists and locals; no arrests were made or summons handed out. Reporters were on hand from both the Union Leader and the Keene Sentinel as well as a video crew from the Obscured Truth Network.
This event is scheduled to take place everyday at 4:20pm.
Public discussions about health care reform have soured amid protests. Senator Jeanne Shaheen has had three such events affected by large numbers of individuals who voiced disapproval with the current legislation in Washington D.C. Sen. Shaheen put out a press release yesterday calling the protests a “disgrace” and insisting that good people had their “rights trampled on.” The Senator’s press release also states, “Protesters were present at office hours held today in Grafton and yesterday in Hampstead.”
“These are not town hall meetings but rather office hours that we host in Town Halls across the state in order to make our caseworkers available to New Hampshire citizens who need help,” said Shaheen. After visiting Sen. Shaheen’s website most of the “office hours” are listed as “Town Hall” lending the impression that they are meetings to be held in a public place.
This was not the case in Keene today as Sen. Jeanne Shaheen’s constituents gathered on the second floor of the City Hall for a chance to speak with Keene City Councilor Pamela Slack, Ward 2, who was there on behalf of the Senator. The individuals were taken in for one on one conversations with Councilor Slack who would not allow any cameras into the room.
