Ken Gorman
Encyclopedia
Ken Gorman was a marijuana
activist who was shot and killed in his home on February 17, 2007 in Colorado
. He ran for Colorado state governor
as a write-in candidate and supported pro-legalization candidates, particularly Libertarian
candidate Ralph Shnelvar in the 1990s.
. He worked in Vietnam
, Papua New Guinea
, and the Philippines
. He was stationed near Miyakojima in Japan
at a long-range radar facility during the Vietnam War
. His first wife introduced him to marijuana in Loveland, Colorado
in 1969. Gorman was often quoted as saying "It has been a friend of mine ever since." He went on to a career with the FAA
as an air traffic controller. On August 5, 1981, while stationed in Hawaii
, he was fired by Ronald Reagan
along with 11,358 other PATCO (Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization) members who were on strike.
After that, he worked in Papua New Guinea, recruiting students for "western-style" schooling. Around 1984, he became very friendly with the natives and gave them a public voice with radio broadcasts and newspaper articles about natives rights. He was arrested and charged with many crimes. He was only convicted on possession of pornography (a Playboy
magazine). He was given a plane ticket to Manila
, some spending money, and was escorted to the airport. Gorman's good friend, Pious Wingti, took power in 1985. Wingti's election victory was significantly due to the public outrage over Gorman's deportation. Later, he assisted the Philippine rebels in their quest to overthrow Ferdinand Marcos
. He was forcibly deported in 1985. The Filipino people succeeded in deposing Marcos the following year.
In 1992, while doing business-to-business sales for Video Professor
, he read The Emperor Wears No Clothes
by Jack Herer
. Learning about "the marijuana conspiracy" made him so angry that he dedicated his life to revealing the truth about hemp
and marijuana. Gorman started a company selling hemp products. He advertised marijuana in Denver's Westword Newspaper, on the locally famous "Back Page". The ad read, "MARIJUANA - FREE DELIVERY - NO COPS - NO JOKE". Later that year, Gorman started holding "smoke-ins" on the steps of the Colorado capitol building
. One of his 1993 rallies featured "The Emperor Of Hemp", Jack Herer. He ran for Colorado state governor in 1994 and 1998.
In May 1999, Gorman allowed himself to be arrested for selling three pounds of marijuana to a police informant
who claimed to be buying it for medicinal purposes. Gorman served six months in the Jefferson County jail, 16 months in a Cañon City minimum-security facility, 18 months in a halfway house
, and two years wearing a monitoring ankle bracelet. In 2000, Colorado adopted a constitutional amendment creating a medical marijuana system. After realizing the severe lack of medical grade marijuana available for patients, Gorman worked tirelessly to sign up caregivers to increase the availability of medicinal marijuana. He supported Libertarian
candidates Rick Stanley for Senate and Boulder
's Ralph Shnelvar for Governor in 2002.
The rallies continued several times a year, but Gorman had to "officially" remove his name as organizer due to the RAVE Act of 2002 and the Illicit Drug Anti-Proliferation Act
of 2003. He supplied as many patients with caregivers or medicinal marijuana as he could. In 2004/2005, he was a featured speaker at meetings of the Colorado Compassion Club in Denver. On February 17, 2007, in Denver, Colorado
, Gorman was shot in the chest in his living room.
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
activist who was shot and killed in his home on February 17, 2007 in Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
. He ran for Colorado state governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
as a write-in candidate and supported pro-legalization candidates, particularly Libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
candidate Ralph Shnelvar in the 1990s.
Biography
Gorman graduated from Denver's Lincoln High School in 1964. As his father had before him, Gorman joined the Air Force, working as an air traffic controllerAir traffic controller
Air traffic controllers are the people who expedite and maintain a safe and orderly flow of air traffic in the global air traffic control system. The position of the air traffic controller is one that requires highly specialized skills...
. He worked in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
, and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. He was stationed near Miyakojima in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
at a long-range radar facility during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. His first wife introduced him to marijuana in Loveland, Colorado
Loveland, Colorado
Loveland is a Home Rule Municipality that is the second most populous city in Larimer County, Colorado, United States. Loveland is situated north of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. Loveland is the 14th most populous city in Colorado. The United States Census Bureau that in 2010 the...
in 1969. Gorman was often quoted as saying "It has been a friend of mine ever since." He went on to a career with the FAA
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
as an air traffic controller. On August 5, 1981, while stationed in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, he was fired by Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
along with 11,358 other PATCO (Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization) members who were on strike.
After that, he worked in Papua New Guinea, recruiting students for "western-style" schooling. Around 1984, he became very friendly with the natives and gave them a public voice with radio broadcasts and newspaper articles about natives rights. He was arrested and charged with many crimes. He was only convicted on possession of pornography (a Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
magazine). He was given a plane ticket to Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, some spending money, and was escorted to the airport. Gorman's good friend, Pious Wingti, took power in 1985. Wingti's election victory was significantly due to the public outrage over Gorman's deportation. Later, he assisted the Philippine rebels in their quest to overthrow Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
. He was forcibly deported in 1985. The Filipino people succeeded in deposing Marcos the following year.
In 1992, while doing business-to-business sales for Video Professor
Video Professor
Video Professor, Inc. is a U.S. company that develops, manufacturers and offers tutorials for a variety of computer-related subjects, such as learning to use Microsoft Word, Microsoft Windows, and eBay. Video Professor was founded in 1987 by John W. Scherer and is located in Lakewood, Colorado. ...
, he read The Emperor Wears No Clothes
The Emperor Wears No Clothes
The Emperor Wears No Clothes is a book written by Jack Herer. Starting in 1973, Jack Herer took the advice of his friend "Captain" Ed Adair and began compiling tidbits of information about cannabis and its numerous uses. After a dozen years of collecting and compiling historical data, Herer first...
by Jack Herer
Jack Herer
Jack Herer was an American cannabis activist and the author of The Emperor Wears No Clothes, a book which has been used in efforts to decriminalize cannabis.-Biography:...
. Learning about "the marijuana conspiracy" made him so angry that he dedicated his life to revealing the truth about hemp
Hemp
Hemp is mostly used as a name for low tetrahydrocannabinol strains of the plant Cannabis sativa, of fiber and/or oilseed varieties. In modern times, hemp has been used for industrial purposes including paper, textiles, biodegradable plastics, construction, health food and fuel with modest...
and marijuana. Gorman started a company selling hemp products. He advertised marijuana in Denver's Westword Newspaper, on the locally famous "Back Page". The ad read, "MARIJUANA - FREE DELIVERY - NO COPS - NO JOKE". Later that year, Gorman started holding "smoke-ins" on the steps of the Colorado capitol building
Colorado State Capitol
The Colorado State Capitol Building, located at 200 East Colfax Avenue in Denver, Colorado, is the home of the Colorado General Assembly and the offices of the Governor of Colorado and Lieutenant Governor of Colorado. The building is intentionally reminiscent of the United States Capitol. Designed...
. One of his 1993 rallies featured "The Emperor Of Hemp", Jack Herer. He ran for Colorado state governor in 1994 and 1998.
In May 1999, Gorman allowed himself to be arrested for selling three pounds of marijuana to a police informant
Informant
An informant is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law enforcement world, where they are officially known as confidential or criminal informants , and can often refer pejoratively to the supply of information...
who claimed to be buying it for medicinal purposes. Gorman served six months in the Jefferson County jail, 16 months in a Cañon City minimum-security facility, 18 months in a halfway house
Halfway house
The purpose of a halfway house, also called a recovery house or sober house, is generally to allow people to begin the process of reintegration with society, while still providing monitoring and support; this is generally believed to reduce the risk of recidivism or relapse when compared to a...
, and two years wearing a monitoring ankle bracelet. In 2000, Colorado adopted a constitutional amendment creating a medical marijuana system. After realizing the severe lack of medical grade marijuana available for patients, Gorman worked tirelessly to sign up caregivers to increase the availability of medicinal marijuana. He supported Libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
candidates Rick Stanley for Senate and Boulder
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
's Ralph Shnelvar for Governor in 2002.
The rallies continued several times a year, but Gorman had to "officially" remove his name as organizer due to the RAVE Act of 2002 and the Illicit Drug Anti-Proliferation Act
Illicit Drug Anti-Proliferation Act
The Illicit Drug Anti-Proliferation Act of 2003 is a United States federal law enacted as a rider within the PROTECT Act on April 30, 2003. A substantially similar Act was proposed during the previous Congress as the Reducing Americans' Vulnerability to Ecstasy Act .-Legislative history:The RAVE...
of 2003. He supplied as many patients with caregivers or medicinal marijuana as he could. In 2004/2005, he was a featured speaker at meetings of the Colorado Compassion Club in Denver. On February 17, 2007, in Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
, Gorman was shot in the chest in his living room.