History: Jack Herer - The Dash - 1939-2010

"Hemp will be the future of all mankind, or there won't be a future." Jack Herer

By Michael Bachara, Hemp News Staff

Friends and family have confirmed that Jack Herer, known throughout the world as ‘The Hemperor,’ passed away on Thursday, April 15, 2010 in Eugene, Oregon. Herer was 70 years old, and a dear friend to CRRH and THCF, he will be greatly missed.

"No other single person has done more to educate people all across the world about industrial hemp and marijuana as Jack Herer. His book is translated into a dozen different languages, it's a bestseller in Germany. His legacy will continue to inspire and encourage for generations to come. I honor his memory." Paul Stanford, CRRH/THCF

"He was one of my personal heroes." Madeline Martinez, Oregon NORML

"The one and only Jack Herer will be missed forever." Bonnie King, Salem-News

Despite not being introduced to cannabis until he was 30 years old, Herer spent most of the rest of his life speaking out for the cannabis cause. He is often referred to as the father of the cannabis legalization movement, and his passionate speeches and bombastic personality were infectious throughout the world.

Herer's book, "The Emperor Wears No Clothes" is in it's eleventh edition and has been sold worldwide. His goal of educating people about the cannabis plant and his consistent activism helped launch and push forward the cannabis legalization movement.

After suffering a stroke in 2000, Herer battled his way back to continue on with his hectic speaking schedule, and illness could not keep him down. He continued the crusade for hemp until his heart attack in September of 2009 at the Portland Hempstalk.

The Dash by Linda Ellis

I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on his tombstone
From the beginning to the end.

He noted that first came his date of his birth
And spoke the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between those years.

For that dash stands for all the time
That he spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved him
Know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own,
The cars, the house, the cash,
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard;
Are there things you'd like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
To consider what's true and real
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.

We'd be less quick to anger
And show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect
And more often wear a smile
Remembering that this special dash
Might only last a little while.

So when your eulogy is being read
With your lifes actions to rehash
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent your dash?