4:20: the secret sign that has become a symbol of marijuana, what does it mean and what is its origin

April 20 of each year has a very important meaning in the cultivation of cannabis, because it is marked as Marijuana day and those who consume it usually celebrate it at 16:20 either through a demonstration to legalize it, like the case of Denver in 2015, which had been the epicenter of the party for a year before, Colorado was the first state in the United States to allow its sale for recreational purposes.

The history of this symbol dates back to 1971, with a group of friends who called each other “The Waldos”, Five teenagers who stumbled upon a hand-drawn map that would take them to a marijuana farm in Punta Reyes, a tourist destination northwest of San Francisco. The plan was to go after school, at 4:20 p.m. to search for the supposed treasure they never found.

It was a private signal that became a global symbol. The group of friends said half the fun was looking for the treasure.

Later the rock band, Grateful Dead began to use the symbol, as well as his fans, the Dead heads, they did too.

In 1990 Steve Bloom, editor of High Times magazine, which specializes in cannabis cultivation, saw flyers during a presentation of the group. inviting people to smoke on April 20 at 4:20 p.m. This is how the magazine staff began to use it as well, for example in their editorial meetings, which were held at 4:20 pm.

However, in 2010 a rival group of boys looking for the treasure appeared, and one such group claimed to have coined the term, but the Waldos were who showed evidence such as letters and other items that allowed them to verify them.

The combination of the numbers “420” has become a semi-private symbol that marijuana users often find everywhere like in a clock, prices, streets and even road signs, Such is the case with the sign on Interstate 70 in Colorado, which marks 420 miles, being continuously flown, they chose to change it to one that read “419.99 miles.”

On the origin of the term, there was a rumor that it was some sort of code used by the San Rafael police to denote marijuana, however, this version was incorrect.

High Times was in charge of the internationalization of the symbol and in the early 90’s they bought the web domain 420.com.

Currently, the celebration has spread around the world, although initially the date was only celebrated in Canada and the United States, because there is also a search in sensitize on the multiple uses of marijuana, through marches, meetings and demonstrations with the aim of eliminate prejudices that exist on those who consume it.

Marijuana has always had negative connotations, for this reason there are still advertisementssocial debate on its legalization, because in them the relationship it has with the violence, crime and addiction that it can generate stands out, on the other hand, there are arguments in favor such as medicinal use that you may have in diseases such as Cancer, diabetes, glaucoma, epilepsy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer’s syndrome, anxiety and depression, sleep disturbances, bronchial asthma and cerebral ischema.

Since 2016, they have been imported to Mexico products containing the component cannabidiol, whose authorization has been granted by the health regulatory authority, so that patients who need it can use it without the need for a court order.

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