DETROIT (WXYZ) — A legendary weed warrior is opening his next project in Detroit.
John Sinclair is one of the founding fathers of the movement to legalize marijuana.
“I was in prison for 10 years, for 2 joints,” he says.
It’s been a wild ride to 2019 for Sinclair. In the 60s he was one of the loudest voices for legalizing marijuana, so much so that an A-list of musicians took to a stage to protest his imprisonment at the University of Michigan in 1971.
'“That was - that was the greatest thing ever happen in my life. nothing more I can say about that,” Sinclair says.
It worked. John was released shortly after and another John – John Lennon - penned a song about the man aptly titled “John Sinclair.”
“They thought it was about some made up guy like Rocky Raccoon or something,” Sinclair says.
Today, Sinclair is a bit battle worn, but hasn’t lost his fire when it comes to weed.
“The same people who put us in prison for marijuana now want $66,000 to open up a dispensary so you can sell it to people, that’s pretty crazy to me,” he says.
Having spent time in Amsterdam, Sinclair’s decided that something there is missing here in the Midwest - a coffee shop that caters to his crowd.
“People that go to smoke weed go to these places, hang out, have a juice or a coffee, meet their friends. Take their laptop listen to music,” Sinclair says. “We’re not gonna be the place where you get your weed, but we’re going to be the same kind of place.”
So inside Bob’s Psychedelic Healing Shack on Woodward, you’ll find the John Sinclair Foundation Cafe and Coffee Shop.
Sinclair hopes it will one day be a designated legal spot to smoke.
“Really, sincerely, I thought in 1977 this would be over. Now it’s 2018 so, almost over,” he says.
The shop opens Monday, just before 2019.
