Pubdate: Wed, 02 Nov 2005
Source: Manitoban, The (CN MB Edu)
Copyright: 2005, The Manitoban
Contact:  http://www.umanitoba.ca/manitoban/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2665
Author: Nathan Sharpe, CUP Alberta and Northern Bureau Chief
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?196 (Emery, Marc)
Bookmark: 
http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)

POT ACTIVIST MARC EMERY DECONSTRUCTS HIS DRUG KINGPIN STATUS

Facing Possible Extradition To The U.S., The Pot Activist Extraordinaire 
Expands On Everything Marijuana And On His Planned Canadian Tour Of 
Universities

VANCOUVER (CUP) - Sitting in his bookstore in Vancouver, Marc Emery looks 
like anything but his Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) title of "drug kingpin."

Despite the marijuana literature and drug-related artifacts that dot the 
walls of the space that also doubles as the B.C. Marijuana Party's 
headquarters, the place feels more like a museum with a gift shop than an 
international drug cartel hangout. As the middle-aged family man, its 
curator, sat down to smoke a joint and talk about his recent arrest, a 
small crowd gathered in the store to listen to what he had to say.

"Probably got about two years before I get extradited if it all goes 
according to the government plan," he said, exhaling.

The very fact that he can openly smoke pot in the store on Hastings St. in 
Vancouver's East Side is testament to how far marijuana activism has come 
in a relatively short while. When Emery first started, literature on 
marijuana that encouraged use was illegal, as was the popular magazine 
"High Times," which he sold illegally in the early 1990s.

Emery had not yet devised plans for the Canadian magazine "Cannabis 
Culture" or the television station "Pot-TV."

Now, marijuana use is so tolerated by local law enforcement that Vancouver 
has earned the nickname Vansterdam, and next door to his bookstore, pot 
smoke billows out of an Amsterdam-style coffee shop.

But it's come at a cost.

On July 29, 2005, 10 RCMP officers in tactical gear, along with local 
Halifax law enforcement officials, arrested Emery. He faces no prosecution 
in Canada, but likely faces life in prison in the U.S. because of a DEA 
investigation into his seed-selling business, Marc Emery Direct Marijuana 
Seeds.

In a reflective article he wrote after the incident, Emery described the 
raid on him and his businesses.

"While I was handcuffed and being delivered to the dank cells of the 
Halifax lockup, raids by Vancouver police were underway in my home, my 
offices and the BCMP bookstore in Vancouver. No real quantities of drugs or 
marijuana were found, and, in fact, really only 5,000 seeds at the most 
were available to be taken."

In Vancouver, two of Emery's associates were arrested as well, Michelle 
Rainey-Fenkarek and Greg Williams, both pot crusaders.

They are now known as the BC 3 and face prosecution in Seattle on charges 
of conspiracy to manufacture marijuana, conspiracy to distribute marijuana 
seeds and conspiracy to engage in money laundering.

The U.S. DEA has given him the title of "kingpin" and claims he is the most 
important international drug trafficker in Canada, and one of the top 46 in 
the world. This title is more than a media catchword, though; it could land 
him with the death penalty in the U.S. under the drug kingpin legislation 
first enacted in 1988.

Emery thinks that if he gets extradited, no one in Canada will see him 
alive again. He explained that the DEA is painting such an ugly picture of 
him because they are afraid of him.

"They are afraid of my ability to speak and my ability to organize and get 
the media to pay attention," he said.

Emery believes the DEA would be in trouble if Canada ended marijuana 
prohibition because they might have to follow suit. He thinks that the DEA 
would be unable to keep Americans from coming north for their marijuana, or 
from that reefer making its way south. This could then result in the DEA 
having its budget cut, and the same people that have been watching him 
would be out of jobs.

The DEA has admitted that they have gone after Emery for political reasons. 
They called his arrest a significant blow for the marijuana legalization 
movement and recently clarified their motivation for arresting Emery when a 
spokesperson said, "Drug legalization lobbyists now have one less pot of 
money to rely on."

It is no secret that Emery puts most of his many operations' profits back 
into the legalization movement, despite not owning a house or a car, and 
the DEA estimated that he makes more than $3 million a year.

But despite the DEA's attempt to cut the head of what it perceives as the 
Canadian pot monster, Emery said other seed vendors have filled the void 
left by his inability to operate his business.

"All these other vendors have moved in to answer the demand," he said, 
looking almost annoyed.

Emery was quick to point out there are several vendors within walking 
distance of his bookstore on Hastings St.

For now though, the logistics of growing are the farthest thing from 
Emery's mind. As always, he is playing the media attention to his advantage 
and said that he will be doing a nation-wide farewell tour to Canadian 
universities if he is extradited.

"If I get my way then the DEA will become abolished and rendered inert," he 
said. "Cops like the drug war, it gives them power and agency, feeds their 
egos."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom