Thousands attend annual rally supporting marijuana use

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Several thousand people have gathered on the University of Michigan’s campus in Ann Arbor to celebrate marijuana.

The annual Hash Bash started Saturday afternoon on the school’s Diag and has become a rallying effort for legalizing marijuana use.

The Ann Arbor News reports that attorney and activist Jeffrey Hank released a pair of white doves Saturday as symbols of the fight to legalize pot.

Michigan bans marijuana use and possession unless it’s medical marijuana.

Voters in six Michigan communities passed marijuana decriminalization measures in November 2014. Voters in two Oakland County communities passed similar measures that August, while voters in Lansing were among residents in three cities who approved decriminalization proposals in 2013.

An estimated 8,000 people attended last year’s rally.