[420 Girl]

Demystifying The Man Behind The Mission: A Journalist's Study Of Pro-Marijuana Activist, Rob Griffin

Marijuana. Cannabis. Dank. Four-twenty. Marley. The Yellow Submarine. Weed. Tai Stick. Torch. Toke. Grass. Reefer. Skunk. Smoke. Ganja. Pot. M.J. Jane. Indo. Puff. Smoke. Hemp. Dope. Chronic. Bud. Poke. Burn. Funk. Buddha.

Cannabis sativa (or subsp. indica) is a psychoactive plant primarily used by smoking the dried flowers and subtending leaves of the female plant. The major biologically active chemical compound in cannabis is 9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol), commonly referred to as THC.

Currently a modern movement for legalization of the cannabis sativa plant has taken stronghold in American culture, especially within the liberal sub-cultures of California. All over, people are pushing for the recognition of the substance as a medicine as well as the right to use it as a recreational substance. Just how new is this, “modern” movement?

As far back as the third millennium B.C., anthropologists have found evidence of the inhalation of cannabis smoke. Cannabis was known and used by the Hindus and other Indian peoples, the Assyrians and other Mesopotamian peoples, the Scythians and other Scandinavian peoples, the Thracians and other Grecian/Mediterranean peoples along with Native Americans, Native Africans, the ancient people groups of China and Russia and many, many more paleolithic to neolithic people groups of the ages. Using cannabis is not new. Fighting for the right to use cannabis in the modern political and government system of The United States Of America is new, however.

Rob Griffin: Genesis of a visionary and cannabis awareness activist. He walks tall these days among the movers and shakers of the Cannabis and Hemp awareness movements. He has taken his message global. This article attempts to demystify and humanize the man behind the mission; the present journalist attempts to uncover the real Robert Griffin.

Leading one of the most intense and driven efforts in the political and social movements seeking to legalize cannabis is Robert Griffin. “Rob,” as his fans, friends, online comrades, “420 Girls” and those involved in his movement prefer to call him by, began his mission in 1993 with the publication of a printed magazine which was titled, "420 Times." Soon after came the arrival of 420Times.com, which was a forum and cannabis community originally created with the readers of 420 Times in mind.

The content of the forums was the beginning of the mission which supplied free and accurate information about marijuana to the readers and interactive users of the website. Access to worldwide cannabis news, information on cultivation of marijuana and the advanced horticulture that accompanies successful growth of this plant was provided on the site. Resources linking patients to prescribing and recommending physicians, legal information on obtaining medical licenses, accurate facts about cannabis, reliable statistics documenting the reality of how, when, where and by whom cannabis is used and for what reasons, along with information on the medicinal effects, as well as factual documentation on cannabis abuse and dependence amongst many, many other things. The site provided vast information on the use of hemp and “green” energy sources. The resources on environmental issues were progressive and ahead of the time as well as informative and an encouraging reminder to use renewable sources and take the initiative of recycling.

All of this information could be accessed for free. The honest desire to utilize free speech to provide information cost-free was the first notable mission of Rob’s.

The site also sufficed as an interactive, online community where users could get involved in discussions, debates, ask questions, answer questions, post polls, and seek advice from other users.

Not long after the launch of 420 Times, a similar site called, “Overgrow” which had a similar mission and provided similar information was shutdown due to illegal sales of cannabis seeds. Too many members who once belonged to that site were left with no online resources to trust, no online community to get involved with and no direction whatsoever in what would come next in the movement to legalize cannabis.

This was a major jump-off point for 420 Times. Being the only other leading cannabis community at the time, there was a sudden explosion of new members joining the site daily. However, there was also a brand new birth of cannabis communities all over the internet. 420 Times was the original and first cannabis community, however. “Overgrow” had a been a site targeted at information and instruction on growing and cultivating cannabis while 420 Times brought so much more into the picture - mainly the social cohesion of members of a sub-culture seeking to make information accessible and promote the legalization of cannabis as a medicine or otherwise. In 2003, 420 Times was renamed 420 Magazine and given the new internet address 420Magazine.com. As history unfolded, 2006 marked an unfortunate year in which the print version of the publication became unavailable due to financial obstacles which made hard-copy production of 420 Magazine no longer an affordable option. Presently, the publication is still active and released regularly although it is currently an online periodical which can be read on 420Magazine.com. If the reader prefers, it may be received directly by email via a free email subscription option available on the website. Plans to reprint 420 Magazine with paper and ink are currently underway and the publication is expected to be hot off the presses again within the next year.

As we seek to take this article to the main focus of discovering who Rob Griffin, the creator of 420 Magazine is, we must finish examining what his organizations are so that we can understand who he is with accurate knowledge in reference to his different projects, organizations and publications.
Pertinent to our look at Rob Griffin’s work is exploring what his “420 Girls” project was, is and what he hopes for it to be in the future.

420 Girls located at 420Girls.com was launched in 1993 with the precise goal of drawing more people into the legalization movement through the attraction, glamor and sexual appeal of the nude figure of a woman. In explaining the site and its content accurately, the best description would be that of a website depicting nude women smoking marijuana, posing with smoking paraphernalia, marijuana flowers and leaves, as well as modeling nude in medical marijuana distribution centers, hemp fields and marijuana cultivation rooms. The content would be considered 18+ and is also a site for profit. With a credit card, any adult can access over fifteen thousand photos of nude women of all ages, colors and backgrounds smoking, posing with and showing appreciation for the plant. All money earned from subscriptions to the site go right back into the financial demands of running 420 Magazine. 420 Girls is considered a division of 420 Magazine.

Oftentimes 420 Girls is brought up in the most negative manner. There are many who have dismissed the site as pornography, photographed drug usage and serving to encourage illegal behavior. However, it needs to be stated that, first of all, the site is not pornographic. Pornography is defined in cultural anthropology as the depiction of sexual degradation of women and the presentation of obscene content which has absolutely no artistic value. With that in mind, take note that there are no images of vaginal spreads nor any sort of penetration on the site. Degradation is also not part of the site, either, as it should be noted that all photography is based on the choices of each model regarding how much or how little to show, in what positions she wants to pose for the photos and how much or how little sexuality she wants to display as part of the photography. Some sets are very sexual. Other sets remind the viewer more of being in an art museum. Some of the models are silly and laugh a lot in their photos. Other models maintain a sexy, “Come hither,” appearance.

The women range from amateur models to porn stars to political activists, college students, grandmothers and random volunteers. They are White, Black, Asian, Native American, Indian, Pacific Islander, Hispanic and from all different countries, backgrounds, incomes and belief systems. Some have breast augmentations. Many do not. Some are super thin. Others are rotund. The website is definitely not a pornographic project and would fall more likely somewhere between the definitions of modern art and counter-culture erotica.

More recently, in 2007, Rob Griffin released an absolutely amazing project based off of the 420 Girls. It was to be Rob’s first major published work in relation to 420 Magazine and the 420 Girls division. The publication was a book titled Naked Girls Smoking Weed (with the subtitle, “Best Of 420 Girls”). The official book description is as follows,

“Rob Griffin’s coffee table book of Cannabis facts and photography, published by Goliath Books, features hundreds of tasteful photos of naked girls smoking Marijuana from bongs, joints, blunts, pipes, hookahs, vaporizers, posing with plants, covered in buds and more. Each page includes an important fact about Hemp and/or Marijuana.

Featured in the book are the top 420 Girls from the 420Girls.com website. Now between book covers for the very first time ever. Could there be anything better? Playboy Bunnies, Penthouse Pets and amateur models coming together and taking a stand by creating Cannabis awareness to the world.

Visionary and noted Hemp & Marijuana activist, Rob Griffin, has captured the spiritual essence of hot nudes smoking weed, in vibrant images drawn from the vast archives of 420Girls.com. This full color hardcover edition exemplifies the vision of the author, and the art of his photography. Rob Griffin walks on untrodden trails, once again.”

The description just documented is accurate and describes the book to the best ability in which it can be elaborated on. It is available in several of the biggest European countries around the world and the preface is translated into several major languages besides English. In the US, it is carried in large bookstore chains such as Border's Books And Music and Barne's And Noble Books.

So who exactly is Rob and what is his mission? ...Rob’s mission was birthed from a marijuana possession conviction occurring in 1992 while Rob was living in Maryland. Because Rob was then considered by law to be a felon of drug related charges, his right to vote was suspended permanently. No care or interest was taken as to whether the possession was medical or not and Rob was given the same caste in society as is given to major felony drug offenders - most often those involved with substances such as methamphetamine and heroin, or involved in crimes such as sales or trafficking drugs across state lines. Rob on the other hand was in no way affiliated with illegal sales or trafficking of anything, let alone any involvement with hard drugs. He had simply been the victim of an unfair and entirely undeserved conviction based on unjust biases that are the result of a recorded, national trend in lack of education concerning cannabis. Unfortunately, much of this suppression of education along with the spread of false “data” is the agenda of our own government.

This was the turning point for Rob Griffin when he decided to stand up, take action and form a movement to end the ridiculous illegalization of cannabis. Maybe Rob could no longer vote, but he certainly didn’t have to sit still or be quiet about it.

Rob’s mission was born. Legalize marijuana by a means of educating the public or “creating Cannabis awareness,” through online media, facts, information and a socially cohesive community.

Examined so far are the basics about Rob Griffin’s history, mission and his online organization and community. But who exactly is Rob and what does he do? Contrary to the opinion of those who do not actually know Rob along with those who have preconceived notions of the man who runs it all on 420 Magazine, Rob is not at all the playboy that one would imagine.

Rob is not flashy, rich, or a lady’s man. He doesn’t go out clubbing. He doesn’t party. And he certainly doesn’t sit around stoned all day. Rob’s work schedule could be described as twenty-five hours a day, eight days a week, fifty-three weeks a years, three hundred and sixty-six days of the year. The real Rob Griffin lives in a tiny apartment, cannot afford to own a car and subsists on inexpensive dinners at home and sandwiches. Rob Griffin spends all of his time, that being from early morning to the late hours of the night, working diligently on the mission site and helping individual people. He answers over fifteen hundred emails a day and is constantly struggling to manage the website as well as deal with one conundrum after another as each day goes by. In fact, Rob has actually divulged to the present journalist the numbers on his first royalty check for his recent book, Naked Girls Smoking Weed. To the reader, that would amount in rough description to only a mere $1300. (The first royalty check is, for informational purposes, defined as what Robert Griffin earned in the first six months since the publication of his book). The royalties from the book went immediately back into the website paying for the costs of internet upkeep and round the clock site moderation.

Proof of Rob’s lack of interest in monetary gain can be made clear in how he turned down a $75k (annual) employment opportunity from High Times. As we touch on the issue of other cannabis publications, it is excellent to ask, “What makes Rob and 420 Magazine different from High Times and other well known cannabis publications?” The answer to this is clear: the mission. While High Times and many similar magazines and websites support the legalization of marijuana, their primary goals are not about the legalization and the political movement for the decriminalization of marijuana. These companies entertain the smoker and provide plenty of content to humor and amuse along with plenty of promoting for the sales and purchase of marijuana seeds, THC-free entertainment “marijuana,” and smoking paraphernalia. However, they completely lack the mission and the goal that Robert Griffin has stood for, built up and created a community and organization for. The difference between 420 Magazine and High Times is purpose, reason and point.

It is also worth noting that Rob Griffin was the first individual to ever create a nude modeling project combined with cannabis imagery such as the 420 Girls "420 Girl Of The Month" competition. The original idea for this project was that of Rob Griffin's. The very first photos the world ever saw in this theme and style were Rob's original idea and creation and marked the launch of the 420 Girls division of 420 Magazine. Immediately following this popular feature came the similar versions of Rob's idea, popping up all over the net like wildfire.

Rob is, of course, a man of more things than just his publications and photography. His heart proudly pumps the blood of Cherokee Indian which accounts for 50% of his ethnic heritage. His own personal identity in terms of a licensed cannabis user falls into three categories. He is an Ordained Minister of The Hawaii Cannabis Ministry which recognizes the daily use of cannabis as a religious sacrament and permits the legal use of cannabis as a protected religious practice to those belonging to the Ministry. He is also a legal, medical marijuana patient which allows him to legally buy cannabis from licensed collectives and use it as a medicine which is protected and lawfully governed under the State Of California as cited in California Senate Bill 420 (HS 11362.7). Rob's Cherokee heritage also gives him legality as a cannabis user in the form of "Cannabis Hemp Rights," which is an act of religious and cultural protection for the Native American peoples' historical and ethnic use of the cannabis plant.

Rob had a unique family life experience. With his father being unavailable as a parent during Rob's childhood, he grew up under the care and parenting of his grandfather. His grandfather was a renowned scientist and author of the famous academic book, "The Pennate Diatoms" [by Norman G. Jensen]. Rob's relationship with his grandfather was a caring and positive experience for Rob. Rob remembers his grandfather as the ideal role model, mentor, teacher and caring father figure. Just as his grandfather published a book about botany, so too has Rob followed in his grandfather's footsteps, albeit in a slightly different nature however, and is now his own author of a botanical book, Naked Girls Smoking Weed. Rob hopes to one day complete one of his grandfather's unfinished studies in the catologuing and analysis of diatom samples.

After fifteen years of blood, sweat and tears, what’s next for Rob Griffin and 420 Magazine? Current projects and work underway at 420 Magazine include production of a documentary about the community and mission as well as site expansion, technological upgrades, fundraising, promotion, the reintroduction of the print version of 420 Magazine, and more importantly, working to take the major political and social steps needed to propel the movement forward toward the mission goal of getting marijuana decriminalized in the United States.

Until then, it’s fair to say that Rob will most definitely remain in his tiny apartment struggling to get by each month while working round the clock to continue his fantastic project of 420 Magazine. He will continue to answer emails, help others, provide support and advice and he will never stop fighting for what he believes in.

420 Magazine is still the number one, online cannabis community and information super highway for marijuana facts and information. It is still 100% free. Anyone can access the information and archives on 420 Magazine completely anonymously and with absolutely no cost or charge for access to any of the website or community. It is also bigger now than ever before and the most comprehensive site on the internet for up to date information about cannabis, worldwide cannabis news, cultivation information, and also has by far the most positive and enjoyable interactive community of individuals involved in the modern cannabis sub-culture.

Rob Griffin is thirty-eight years old and currently lives in Los Angeles, California. In what tiny amount of free time he has, he enjoys surfing, reading and occasionally getting to enjoy a rare moment of idle time. He is loved by many, appreciated by even more and supported by millions of people worldwide.

By Janie Sativa

http://www.420magazine.com/forums/in...b-griffin.html