[420 Girl]

Amid the incense aromas and reggae beats, several hundred Austinites rallied at the Capitol on Saturday for the legalization of marijuana for personal and medical use. The Texas branch of NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, and Outgrow Big Bro, a cannabis-user advocacy organization, hosted Sunday's Texas Cannabis Crusade.

Josh Schimberg, director of Texas NORML, said the Texas Cannabis Crusade was part of the 2008 Global Marijuana March. More than 200 cities worldwide registered for rallies at the Global Marijuana March Web site. "We're trying to get everybody that agrees with us to come together at the Capitol and show people that we want the laws changed," Schimberg said. "And we will get together and congregate to show the politicians, show the public that there's a group of people out here in the public that are being persecuted and we want it to stop."

Event attendee Julian Ward said he gave written testimony last year for medical marijuana use, but the bill did not pass. "I'm on a lot of drugs that are dangerous drugs, legally, and was told that if I could be on marijuana, that I wouldn't need to take these drugs," Ward said.

Starting Sept. 1, 2007, Texas police officers could legally issue citations instead of arresting people in possession of four ounces or less of marijuana. The officer can only issue a citation if the individual is a resident of the county where the offense occurred, according to the policy.

Reps. Barney Frank, D-Mass., and Ron Paul, R-Texas, on April 17 introduced a bill to the U.S. House of Representatives that would eliminate most federal penalties for possession of marijuana for personal use.

The bill is in committee and defines personal use as 100 grams or less or the not-for-profit transfer of one ounce or less of marijuana between adults. According to the bill, a civil penalty for public use of marijuana may still be imposed.

The same day, April 17, Frank, Paul and three other legislators introduced the Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act, which is also still in committee. The bill would prohibit federal law from interfering in states with laws protecting the possession, transportation and manufacture of medical marijuana to prescribed patients.

Sarah Newton, a philosophy and English student at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, spoke at the rally as Miss High Times 2007. She said legalization of marijuana is a pressing issue in the U.S. and strongly believes that it is a right for which people need to fight. "We have people that need it, not just to get high but for medication. Some people need it to survive," Newton said. "Not to mention, in college, we all know we're stressed out, and it definitely helps out."

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