Marijuana is legal in Washington and Colorado, and it should be in Oregon, too. That’s the goal of the upcoming Global Cannabis March to be held at high noon on Saturday, May 4, in downtown Eugene’s Free Speech Plaza. Eugene is one of 235 cities participating worldwide, and it joins Portland and Medford in a localized effort to pass legislation.

In trying to make the most out of the march, organizer Jim Greig and his fellow legalization proponents will bring in a wide variety of speakers. A local representative from the ACLU, another from Law Enforcement Against Prohibition and several activists are among those scheduled to speak.

Marching isn’t all Greig has done in attempting to get cannabis legalized. Through the years, he and his colleagues have put forth legislative initiatives, and they won’t stop doing so. “A few years ago, we had Measure 74 [medical marijuana dispensaries] we put a lot of emphasis into,” he says. “Last year, of course, was Measure 80 [legalization and regulation].” Every year, their focus is different, working to place more attention on all aspects of cannabis, not only legalization for recreational purposes.

Greig spoke at the Americans For Safe Access’ Congressional Panel in Washington D.C. earlier this month in regard to HR 689 and HR 710, two federal bills that, if enacted, would protect medical marijuana patients, reschedule cannabis so legal penalties are lesser and allow states to regulate cannabis. He stressed the four phases of cannabis: industrial use, recreational use, medical use and use for religious purposes.

Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley have “embraced hemp for industrial use,” Greig says, “but there is still the medical use, the recreational use and then people still use it for religious purposes. So I try to bring different speakers on different parts of those four phases to represent the four phases and individualize it.”

For more information on the Global Cannabis March and how to get involved, visit http://wkly.ws/1gk.