Yes. That's all weed. Did the State give you one of these?
DOPE on the Road: Americans By Force
The Untold Story of Hawaii
by Jonah Tacoma, Dope Magazine, May 10, 2018 (excerpts)
… “There’s probably going to be men with machine guns,” I warned, playing on the anxiety that was building in the car. “They may make you wear a blindfold for the last part of the trip.” ….
We were on our way to see our first large scale Hawaiian grow, and none of us knew just what to expect. Large-scale grows are almost unheard-of on the islands and never spoken of, especially to off-islanders. This was my fourth year working the cannabis scene on Oahu, and while we had seen our share of home grows and good island weed, this was a step beyond—a step into a world few people even knew existed….
Turns out my tales of men with machine guns were not too far from the truth. “You are about to meet a man who many people recognize as the King of Hawaii,” he explained, his voice somber. I briefed the crew as we fell in line behind his 4×4, all the humor gone from my voice. “We have to make sure we carry ourselves with respect,”…
An eight-foot tall iron security gate halted our procession. An armed guard in a small security shack buzzed the gate and two trucks hummed to life, backing out of the way to let our procession through before retaking their positions.
A series of small houses lined the dirt road. Massive caged Pit Bulls crossed with a breed I didn’t quite recognize greeted our arrival with howls and bays, clawing at their wire enclosures as we passed. We pulled to a stop in front of a large community building. One of the massive dogs ran up to me untethered as I stepped out of the Jeep, her face scarred…
Our contact motioned us into the building, leading our small party to a conference room. A giant, weathered table encircled by office chairs dominated the space. We took our seats only to quickly rise again as two large Hawaiians entered the room and stepped briskly to the side to make way for a third, an older, heavy-set, muscular man who introduced himself as “Uncle Bumpy,” extending his oak tree of an arm to shake my hand….
“I told them we were going to take all this land back, but it all started with our occupation of the beach at Sea Life Park some 300 strong.” Bumpy’s tone was low and serious, almost ceremonial, and our group sat quiet as he went on. “We just camped out. We built wooden structures up. This was a major tourist destination, and we stayed there for over 15 months, from 1994 to 1995. By the time they offered us the land I didn’t want to sign, but I was worried because the beach was becoming crowded with unknowns using the beach to hide from the law.”....
Bumpy leaned in, locking eyes with me from across the table. “Imagine helping to create a country . . . Inside our country, inside these gates, we can do what we need to do. We have a monetary system; we are embracing cryptocurrency. The stuff we grow over here is helping people all over the place—real Hawaiian medicine, brah.”…
Your tattoos give you away, brotha—you are one of us. Cannabis, cryptocurrency, they are the same; they need a country to embrace them, and we will be that country, brotha.” With that he stood, motioning for us to rise as well. “Come, we will show you the land and then you can see what you came here to see,” he said, smiling. We exited the building into a pair of waiting ATV’s and raced off further into the jungle….
We spent the rest of the afternoon touring the kingdom, smoking oversized joints, and exploring the community cannabis gardens….
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