80 Days and Counting Down To Early Release Date
“STAND UP, STAND UP, STAND UP FOR YOUR RIGHTS”
Marc Emery is a Canadian businessman and political activist who owned and operated Cannabis Culture Magazine, Pot-TV, the BC Marijuana Party, and Marc Emery’s Cannabis Culture Headquarters (previously the BCMP Bookstore, and HEMP BC before that.)
Marc & Wife
He was also the world’s most famous marijuana seed retailer and the biggest financial supporter of the marijuana movement world-wide until the US Drug Enforcement Administration and Canadian law enforcement arrested him in Canada and shut down Marc Emery Direct Seeds in July 2005.
\Marc is currently imprisoned in Yazoo City medium-security prison in Yazoo City, Mississippi after being extradited on May 20th, 2010 by the Canadian government. He was sentenced on September 10th in Seattle federal court to 5 years in prison for “distribution of marijuana” seeds, though the US Drug Enforcement Administration admitted it was actually for his political activism and financing the marijuana movement (see below for that DEA document).
For regular updates about Marc Emery’s status, go to:
Facebook.com/PrinceOfPot – Marc Emery’s Fan Page
Facebook.com/MarcEmery – Marc Emery’s personal profile
Facebook.com/JodieEmery – Marc’s wife’s personal profile
FACTS ABOUT MARC EMERY:
• Marc Emery is a Canadian citizen who never went to the USA as a seed seller.
• Marc Emery operated his seed business in Canada at all times, with no American branches or employees.
• Marc Emery declared his income from marijuana seed sales on his income tax, and paid over $580,000 to the Federal and Provincial governments from 1999 to 2005.
• Marc Emery is the leader of the British Columbia Marijuana Party, a registered political party that has regularly participated in elections.
• Marc Emery has never been arrested or convicted of manufacturing or distributing marijuana in Canada, as he only sold seeds.
• Marc Emery gave away all of the profits from his seed business to drug law reform lobbyists, political parties, global protests and rallies, court litigation, medical marijuana initiatives, drug rehabilitation clinics, and other legitimate legal activities and organizations.
• Marc Emery helped found the United States Marijuana Party, state-level political parties, and international political parties in countries such as Israel and New Zealand.
• Marc Emery has been known as a book seller and activist in Canada for 30 years, fighting against censorship laws and other social issues long before he became a drug law reform activist.
• Marc Emery has been a media figure for 20 years with regards to marijuana and drug law reform. He is very well-known to Canadian, American and international news media organizations.
• Marc Emery operated his business in full transparency and honesty since its inception in 1994, even sending his marijuana seed catalogue inside his magazine “Cannabis Culture” to each Member of Parliament in Canada every two months for years.
Marc openly ran “Marc Emery Direct Marijuana Seeds” from a store in downtown Vancouver and through mail-order from 1994 to 2005, with the goal to fund anti-prohibition and pro-marijuana activists and organizations across North America and the world
Marc always paid all provincial and federal taxes on his income and made no secret to anyone of his seed-selling business. Marc was raided by police for selling seeds and bongs in 1996 and again in 1997 and 1998, but despite the seizure of his stock by police, the Canadian courts sentenced Emery only to fines and no jail time.
Canadian police then pressured the American Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to launch a cross-border attack against Marc. They arranged to have him charged under America’s much more severe laws against seeds
Marc was arrested in Canada by American agents in 2005, and originally faced a minimum 30-year sentence in the US, with the possibility of life behind bars. After years of legal efforts, and ensuring his two co-accused received no prison time, Marc made a plea-bargain for a five-year sentence in the US. Marc had originally secured a deal with US officials to serve his five-year sentence in Canada, but the Conservative Government of Canada refused to allow this, and forced him to be extradited to the US.
The US Drug Enforcement Administration admitted on the day of Marc Emery’s arrest that his investigation and extradition were politically motivated, designed to target the marijuana legalization efforts and organizations that Emery spearheaded and financed for over a decade.
Here is the original text of DEA Administrator Karen Tandy’s statement released on July 29th, 2005 (also available in its original letterhead form by clicking here):
“Today’s DEA arrest of Marc Scott Emery, publisher of Cannabis Culture Magazine, and the founder of a marijuana legalization group — is a significant blow not only to the marijuana trafficking trade in the U.S. and Canada, but also to the marijuana legalization movement.
His marijuana trade and propagandist marijuana magazine have generated nearly $5 million a year in profits that bolstered his trafficking efforts, but those have gone up in smoke today.
Emery and his organization had been designated as one of the Attorney General’s most wanted international drug trafficking organizational targets — one of only 46 in the world and the only one from Canada.
Hundreds of thousands of dollars of Emery’s illicit profits are known to have been channeled to marijuana legalization groups active in the United States and Canada. Drug legalization lobbyists now have one less pot of money to rely on.”
On May 10th, 2010, Marc was ordered extradited by Justice Minister Rob Nicholson. He was taken to the USA on May 20th. Marc was forced to endure three weeks of complete solitary confinement for recording a “prison podcast” over the phone for release on the internet. You can listen to his 2009 “Prison Pot-casts” by clicking here.
ESSENTIAL MARC EMERY VIDEOS
Watch these videos for more information about who Marc is, what he did, and why.
CNN visits Canada’s Prince of Pot (1997)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPxXCojBfGY – Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8v-YoEebzz8 – Part 2
CBS 60 Minutes: The Prince of Pot (2006)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vp_PrxZz5QE – Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6O1Xb0DU9Rk – Part 2
Marc Emery on CBC Sunday (January 2008)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYz7vJSiehI – Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7rWaOPJYiE – Part 2
SELECTED MARC EMERY RESOURCES
“Marc Emery’s Marching Orders.” Marc’s final video message before being ja
10 Facts About Marc Emery (10 Important Facts about Marc Emery)
Did You Know…? (More Information on Marc Emery)
MARC EMERY VIDEO TIMELINE
2010: “Principle of Pot” Documentary about Marc Emery
2010: “Prince of Pot” CNN iReport feature story
2009: “Marc Emery’s Marching Orders.” Marc’s final video message before being jailed
2009: CBC Documentary: “Prince Of Pot: The US vs. Marc Emery”
2008: CBC feature interview with Marc Emery
2006: 60 Minutes profile on Marc Eme
2006: CBC News profile on Marc Emery.
2005: “Who I am, Why I Did It.” article by Marc Emery.
2005: “Escape to Canada” documentary featuring Marc Emery
2002: Cannabis Culture interview with Marc, about his career and work selling marijuana seeds.
1999: Cannabis Culture interview with Marc, covering his early years and raids.
1997: CNN “Canada Cannabis” Marc Emery profile
1994: Article written by Marc Emery, outlining his philosophy and the founding of Hemp BC.
1992: Documentary “Messing up the System” covering Marc’s very early career.