4/20 cannabis celebration at Hippie Hill in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park canceled
SAN FRANCISCO – Organizers of the annual 4/20 event at Hippie Hill in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco announced that the 2024 celebration of all things cannabis has been canceled.
In a statement posted on their website Monday, organizers said "we have been unable to secure enough financial sponsorship to get everything required for a safe, clean, city & state compliant event. We will be back next year!"
The group cited multiple reasons for the cancellation including city budget cutbacks, the current climate of the cannabis industry and the economy.
In a separate statement, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department voiced similar reasons for the cancellation, saying it was due to "economic challenges within the cannabis industry, making sponsorships hard to secure, and City budget cuts impacting Rec and Park's ability to cover staffing for the event."
Every April 20, tens of thousands of marijuana enthusiasts have descended on Hippie Hill and Robin Williams Meadow for the celebration, which culminates with a synchronized smoke at 4:20 p.m.
The 4/20 festival began decades ago as a protest and grew to an unofficial gathering of thousands, according to cannabis journalist David Downs.
"People were coming in from every corner of the state. There were minors, there were dogs there, fighting. There were sales of everything. I think there were fights there. I think one year a gunshot went off," he said.
The event was eventually turned into an official festival. The point of regulating Hippie Hill was to create a safe environment, Downs explained. But that safe environment was expensive for the city, which had to install fencing, hire rangers and provide medical support.
In recent years, the number of licensed cannabis cultivators has fallen, and the number of licensed dispensaries has grown. Money is moving in a different way, said Downs.
"Maybe groups are choosing not to spend tens of thousands of dollars on a booth," Downs said. "Maybe they're reaching people digitally."
While the event was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the celebration returned in 2022 with on-site cannabis sales and limiting attendance to people 21 and older.
A long-time cannabis enthusiast and musician in San Francisco who gave his name as Zack Glue said Golden Gate Park holds memories of 4/20 celebrations. His experiences with the annual event go back to a time before it gained official recognition from the city.
"It used to be cool to have a drum circle where everyone was gathering, smoking weed, and hanging out," he reminisces.
He expressed his sentiments about the evolution of the festival, noting its commercialization and departure from its original purpose.
"It's commercialized. I mean, because people were discriminating. Like people saying, 'Oh, these guys are only coming for 4/20.' Like come on, I'm from here, man!" Glue said.
Park officials and organizers stressed that there will be no cannabis booths or live music on the site and urged revelers to mark 4/20 "in a place that's special and local to them."
"We understand the disappointment and hope to make it up with a great event next year," said event organizer Alex Aquino. "Wherever you go, be safe and be respectful of whatever spaces you occupy."
To fill the gap left by the cancelled event, Downs has organized a first-ever SF Weed Week for April 13 to 20. For seven nights, growers will premier world-class strains at seven San Francisco lounges. Events include an exhibition of decorative mylar cannabis bags, speaker's forums featuring growers and journalists, lots of dispensary visits and happy hour parties. More information is available at SFWeedWeek.com.
Undeterred by the changes, Zack Glue said he will continue to play his music at Golden Gate Park, embodying the spirit of community and camaraderie that has defined 4/20 gatherings over the years.
"We're always big with the medical marijuana and then also the drumming and the gathering," he affirmed.
The city will also be holding its first annual Peace, Love and Volo Field Day at the site in Robin Williams Meadow and Hippie Hill.
In addition to cornhole and bocce ball, there will be volleyball and kickball tournaments organized by the nonprofit Volo Sports, which supports youth sports programs around the country. To participate in the Volo field day, visit the event's official website.
Jose Martinez and Bay City News contributed to this report.