John Sinclair, Inspiration To John Lennon And ‘Father Of Modern Cannabis Legalization Movement’ Dies At 82
John Sinclair, long-time cannabis reform activist, poet and counterculture figure who served time in prison for cannabis possession, died on Tuesday in Detroit from heart failure at the age of 82.
Sinclair, who’d been sentenced to 10 years in prison in 1969 for giving two joints to an undercover cop, served 29 months.
John Lennon Connection
On Dec. 10, 1971, John Lennon, performing live in the U.S. for the first time since the breakup of the Beatles, along with Yoko Ono, Stevie Wonder, Bob Seger, the poet Allen Ginsberg and activists Abbie Hoffman and Bobby Seale gave a concert in Sinclair’s honor at the University of Michigan. At the “John Sinclair Freedom Rally,” Lennon performed a song he had written specifically for Sinclair.
Lennon sang. “It …