Protesters on Thursday interrupted marijuana legalization advocacy group ResponsibleOhio's bus tour visit to Ohio University's Athens campus.
The ResponsibleOhio bus was stationed at the bottom of Baker Center for a few hours Thursday in an attempt to push for students to vote “yes” on Issue 3 on the Ohio ballot this year. The measure would approve a constitutional amendment that legalizes marijuana use for adults 21 years or older, though it involves much more than that.
Michael McGovern, the tour's coordinator, said outside the lime-green ResponsibleOhio bus Thursday that he helped roughly 25-30 students get registered to vote in the upcoming November election. McGovern discussed how the amendment will bring in “billions of dollars” of business and industry to the state, make marijuana available for medicinal use, and create 10,000 jobs. He said that students on OU's campus seem to support Issue 3, noting that it was one of the bus tour's most successful college stops so far in terms of getting students registered to vote.
Throughout the time this reporter was at the event, protesters (around 10 were present, but upwards of 20 reportedly showed up earlier in the day) sarcastically chanted “We want Buddy! We want Buddy!” in reference to Responsible-Ohio’s mascot – an anthropomorphic marijuana plant dressed like a superhero (somebody wears the costume at certain RO events).
