For avid marijuana enthusiasts and casual smokers alike, April 20 is a time to whip out a bong or the rolling papers. It also happens to be the date of this year’s annual Cal Day.
Cal Day, for prospective students and parents, will be held this Saturday, April 20, a day also known in marijuana culture as 4/20. Some members of the UC Berkeley community are concerned that the cultural connotations of 4/20, often associated with smoking marijuana, might negatively affect the impression of the UC Berkeley community as a whole to prospective families and reiterate the negative stereotypes associated with Berkeley and drug culture.
According to The Huffington Post, the term “4/20” was allegedly first used by a group of teenagers in the 1970s who would regularly meet after school at 4:20 p.m. to smoke weed.
Today, 4/20 can refer to both the date of April 20 and the time of day and has evolved into an unofficial holiday in which smokers may gather and consume marijuana in a celebratory fashion.
ASUC Senator Mihir Deo expressed concern that the university did not have enough foresight about the cultural connotations of holding Cal Day on 4/20.
“When prospective parents come here, they’ll see this part of Berkeley that doesn’t necessarily define what Berkeley is about,” Deo said. “I think you’ll see some parents who initially wanted their children to go to Berkeley might change their minds.”
According to UC Berkeley spokesperson Dan Mogulof, this is not the first time Cal Day has been held on 4/20. The last time Cal Day was held on 4/20 was 2002.
In general, Cal Day is strategically held on either the second or third Saturday of April, between Easter and the end of the month, when SIR agreements are due for incoming freshmen.
Despite the 4/20 hype among students, Mogulof trusts that the students of UC Berkeley will make responsible decisions on Saturday. According to both campus administrators and UCPD, there are currently no plans or special procedures in place to monitor marijuana consumption on campus on 4/20, nor have there ever been.
“We will address any marijuana-related activity as appropriate,” said Lt. Eric Tejada.
UCPD Officer Marco Ruiz reiterated Tejada’s point that UCPD does not usually take any extra precautionary measures to monitor students on campus on 4/20. In fact, according to Ruiz, UCPD often sends additional forces to UC Santa Cruz on 4/20 to monitor the annual “Smoke Out.”
Contact Jennie Yoon at [email protected]