User:Djflem/Philly Smoke Down

Philly Smoke Down is a civil disobedience event that takes place near the Liberty Bell, an iconic symbol of American independence in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The gatherings have taken place on National Park property known as the People’s Plaza, an open space with a monument to the First Amendment across from the building housing the Liberty Bell. The area is essentially preserved by the Park Service for free speech and protest activity.

Independence Mall is a three-block section of Independence National Historical Park (INHP) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It lies directly north of Independence Hall, and is bounded by Chestnut, Race, 5th and 6th Streets. The south block is called the First Block, the middle block is called the Second Block, and the north block is called the Third Block

Background
In 1993, when the U.S. Congress passed the (42 U.S.C. § 2000bb(a)) Religious Freedom and Restoration Act which allows for the religious use of marijuana on federal grounds during the course of a religious ceremony, Forchion initiated "smoke outs" or "smoke downs' at the national monument..

2000
http://www.njweedman.com/3rd_annual_smokeout.html http://www.njweedman.com/republician_convention.html

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/real-time/Philly-police-raid-pot-party-philly-smoke-session.html

2012
http://420meta.com/gallery-liberty-bell-gathering-calls-for-federal-marijuana/

2013
MOnthky protests http://www.phillynorml.org/2013/10/14/media-alert-monthly-protest-federal-marijuana-prohibition-returns-liberty-bell/ http://www.phillymag.com/news/2013/07/01/police-issue-citations-arrests-marijuana-legalization-protest-smokedown-prohibition/ http://mjnewsnetwork.com/events/burn-on-july-4th-marijuana-the-department-of-homeland-security-and-the-liberty-bell/

Decriminalization
https://billypenn.com/2015/09/01/marijuana-arrests-are-down-77-percent-since-philly-decriminalized-it-last-year-its-being-normalized/