WEEKLY ZINE Vol 97

CULTURE

TRADITION

PASSION

NUGS FAT

#89 #97

magazine

uplift the people, uplift the plant

photo by derrall peach

HOTBOX thomas andersen brett harris

ICBC

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cannabis culture welcomes us all

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CANNABIS, SICKLE CELL, VETERANS, AND THE TAX CODE THAT THREATENS ALL THREE

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BERLIN

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Weekly Digital Magazine designed by Erin Cullison and Dustin Hoxworth

may-day

Weekly zine vol. 97

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all berlin photos taken by derrall peach

Pg. 29: easy diy cbd lavender salve recipe by artesha lawrence

Pg. 3: May Day: Fire, Labor, and the Long Road by dustin hoxworth

Pg. 33: hotbox with thomas andersen by dustin hoxworth

Pg. 9: 6 days in berlin by dustin hoxworth

Pg. 39: cannabis, sickle cell, veterans, and the tax code that threatens all three by james wilder

Pg. 25: letters from africa: fear. hope. despair. by wilfred maina

Pg. 45: hotbox with brett harris by dustin hoxworth

click here

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May Day: Fire, Labor, and the Long Road by dustin hoxworth

May 1st isn’t just another date on the calendar. It’s sort of a signal fire that’s been burning for well over a century. What most people casually call “May Day” is formally known as International Workers' Day, and it was born out of struggle, sacrifice, and a refusal to accept a world that only worked for the wealthy ruling class.

It’s legacy growers who built the culture before it was legal. It’s small operators trying to survive brutal regulations and impossible tax structures. It’s patients, advocates, scientists, and creatives pushing against stigma that never should’ve existed in the first place. It’s people doing the work while larger forces try to control the narrative and the profit. That’s May Day energy!

To understand it, you have to go back to the Haymarket affair in Chicago. Workers were striking for something that now feels pretty basic: an eight-hour workday. Not luxury, or excess, but just some basic dignity in a world where it’s in short supply. The protest turned violent after a bomb went off and police opened fire. People were executed right then and there. And instead of burying the movement, it actually lit a fuse that ended up spreading across the globe.

This zine isn’t just a travel recap. It’s a visual and written archive of a moment where worlds collided. Old systems mixed with opportunities so people can carve out something sustainable in the middle of chaos. The photos you’re about to see aren’t staged perfection. They’re glimpses into a living, breathing movement through conversations., connections, exhaustion. and hope.

May Day became this very real line in the sand. A reminder that labor is not disposable nor are people fucking machines. That progress has always been paid for by those willing to stand up and tell the ruling class to eat shit, and maybe even throw a molotov cocktail or two. The wealthy ruling class does not give up it’s wealth or power through voting alone. They are forced to do so by being scared of the 99%. Keep that in mind as we continue to deal with this fascist bs we’re going through right now.

The fight might look slightly different, but it’s still here: wages, workers’ rights, access to healthcare, a fair justice system, and who gets to build wealth and who gets left grinding just to survive. The names and industries change, but the imbalance doesn’t disappear.

We just got back from ICBC (International Cannabis Business Conference) in Berlin, a city that knows something about division, rebuilding, and rewriting its own story. Berlin carries history in its bones through war, separation, resistance, and reinvention. It’s not polished for tourists at all, which makes it feel truly alive.

Walking those streets while covering ICBC wasn’t just about cannabis. It was about witnessing an industry trying to find its place inside a global system that hasn’t quite caught up yet. Sound familiar? Because cannabis, at its core, is still a labor story.

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May Day reminds us that nothing meaningful is handed over cleanly. It’s built, continuously fought for, and carried forward by people who refuse to sit quietly when they know something better is possible. Berlin reminded us that even the most broken systems can be reshaped. And cannabis proves every damn day that culture will outlast control.

So as you move through this issue, don’t just look at it.

Feel it. The weight of where we’ve been and the moment we now find ourselves is the undeniable pull toward where this all could go if the right people keep pushing.

shangri-la key lime guava photo by paola tello

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pineapple cake photo by derrall peach

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vertical cannabis chedar cheese photo by paola tello 12

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muay thai photo by derrall peach

landrace edition is coming

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Official Partners of Fat Nugs Magazine

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Official Partners of Fat Nugs Magazine

C E RT I F I E D P U B L I C A C C O U N TA N T S

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southern herb co shc durban photo by baleigh stephens

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shangri-la cherry burst photo by paola tello

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rosin lush labs photo by paola tello 46

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shangri-la hash burger photo by paola tello

Podcast partners

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glazed

photo by derrall peach

cannabis culture welcomes us all