Finding a new perspective on psychedelics
The reputation of these compounds is undergoing rehabilitation, but we can’t know how long it will take to shrug off the weight of the mischaracterizations that have been heaped on them for years.
While the full history of psychedelic research cannot be summarized concisely, it seems to have ended, at least for a time, with Richard Nixon’s signing of the Controlled Substances Act in 1970. The statute placed compounds like LSD, psilocybin, and oth er psychedelics in the Schedule I category—rendering them illegal to manufacture, distribute, or use—and designated them as having no accepted medical use for treatment within the United States. The reputation of these compounds is undergoing rehabilitation, but we can’t know how long it will take to shrug off the weight of the mischaracterizations that have been heaped on them for years. Academic conference each have their own atmospheres (entomology gatherings feel different from political science conclaves, for example); perhaps it is because of the relative freshness of the field, but this one was shot through with a sense of wonder and optimism rarely found in other disciplines. And despite a distinctive mood of conviviality, the aesthetic trappings of hippiedom one might expect of a psychedelics conference were limited to a smattering of tie-dyed shirts.
Original Article (blog.oup.com):
Finding a new perspective on psychedelics
Artwork Fair Use: Franz Eugen Köhler, Köhler’s Medizinal-Pflanzen
