Fans of the bud gathered yesterday in Civic Center Park for Denver’s annual 420 marijuana festival. (Yesterday being April 20th – or 4/20 – get it? Ha.) Organizers planned for about 2000 mellow attendees at yesterday’s event. No word on whether the organizers met their goal. No one seemed to be counting.

Being pro-marijuana was more than an abstract policy position for this bunch; everyone here seemed to practice what they preach. Though they were a diverse bunch, there was hardly a whiff conflict anywhere. Aging hippies, sagging a bit and looking a little weathered, twirled and played drums as young frat boys – that species who think Jim Breuer is abso-friggin’-lutely hilarious, man – looked on with approval.

Last November voters passed a referendum making “the investigation, arrest, and prosecution of marijuana offenses…the City’s lowest law enforcement priority.” In 2005, voters also approved a referendum decriminalizing the possession of an ounce or less of marijuana. Though 420 advocates say police often enforce marijuana laws anyway, superceding the public will, police presence at yesterday’s event was minimal.

Unsurprisingly, yesterday’s rally was a pretty chill affair. Which, some organizers say, is the point. Unlike with perfectly legal substances like, say, beer or liquor, people rarely start fights while stoned on marijuana. Maybe no one – cops or attendees – felt like making trouble on such a fine spring afternoon. Or maybe it was just the bud itself. In any case, it was an excellent display of Denverites’ general tolerance for one another.