The Day John Lennon Came To Michigan

That December day in 1971 when John Lennon came to Ann Arbor was his own idea…he wasn’t invited, but took it upon himself to come and perform.

The reason? John had heard about the plight of John Sinclair. Sinclair was chairman of the Rainbow People’s Party of Ann Arbor and was serving an unjust ten years in Jackson State Prison for possession of two marijuana joints. The People’s Party did their best to bring attention to their cause by holding concerts, benefits, and rallies, and they even got a handful of celebrities involved, like actor Donald Sutherland, Jane Fonda, and others. After Yippie activist Jerry Rubin told Lennon about an upcoming December 10 rally for Sinclair, Lennon took the ball and ran. He wrote a song about Sinclair that can be found on his Sometime in New York City album.

The rally was to be held at UM’s Crisler Arena, and Lennon said he would donate his performance fee to the John Sinclair Freedom Fund.

Source: 99wfmk.com

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