April 20th is the unofficial holiday for marijuana. The date is becoming so iconic that an increasing number of American cannabis consumers plan to take the day off to celebrate, of course, by using the substance.
According to information obtained by Forbes Magazine, a recent survey conducted by AYR Wellness, a leading cannabis operator in several states across the United States, with 900 American cannabis consumers reveals the following surprising data:
• 39% of U.S. cannabis consumers will observe 4/20 as a personal holiday this year, taking the day off.
• 31% consider 4/20 a special occasion.
• 42% of patients who use medicinal cannabis stated that 4/20 is an important day for them.
• 71% of respondents anticipated that their consumption habits would remain unchanged on that day.
• 23% indicated they would consume more cannabis on 4/20.
In the last decade, there has been a trend to legalize marijuana in the United States. Currently, at least 37 states, in addition to Washington D.C., have a comprehensive medicinal cannabis program. An increasing number of states, currently 21, have legalized recreational marijuana use.
Origin of the unofficial holiday
There are many widespread theories about this day. The most accepted involves a group of young people known as “The Waldos.” To understand the origin of the date, we must go back to the year 1970 in California, where these young people would gather to smoke marijuana after school at 4:20 PM. They used the code 420 to remind each other of their daily meetings.
Another theory traces the holiday’s origin to Canada in 1995. In Vancouver, 200 cannabis consumers gathered on April 20th to demand the decriminalization of the substance and, as a form of protest, smoked marijuana in public.
Whatever the origin of this celebration, consumers around the world have adopted this date to celebrate World Weed Day, so much so that they also use ‘420’ as an international code for cannabis.