50 years ago this June, and 1 years before his watery demise, President Nixon announced his administration’s decision to prohibit all drugs, including psychedelics, whose promising medical trials were in turn halted.
The reasoning behind the prohibition is being shown up by science for what it was: a purely political, ignorant, small-minded and self-interested attempt to stifle individual liberties and persecute certain demographics unfairly, and to limit free thinking and retain dominance over the American mind.
The War on Drug(Addict)s costs the american taxpayer over $51billion per year, on everything from drug-related arrests to prison. 1 in every 5 incarcerated individuals are locked up for a drug offense, and 450,000 find themselves behind bars every day due to nonviolent drug offences
It’s no secret that people of colour are disproportionately punished by this ‘War’. They make up 50 percent of the state and local prisoners incarcerated for drug crimes. Black kids are 10 times more likely to be arrested for drug crimes than white ones, even though white kids are more likely to abuse drugs.
All this from government; an institution that was created to exist for the people and by the people, not in spite of the people.
Fortunately, trials on these substances have be restarted, the science is still incomplete and ongoing but so far astounding, promising seismic shifts in our treatment of mental health, and our perspective on the nature of consciousness and what it means to be human
While other medical fields have progressed hugely in recent years, innovation in mental health has plateaued. And if these statistics:
- 128 people die daily in the US from overdosing on opiates
- 17 US veterans commit suicide every day due to PTSD from service
- 264 million are affected by depression worldwide
- 40 million are affected by anxiety in the US alone
seem like issues, psychedelics are a catalysing part of the solution. Just look at the astounding results coming out of Johns Hopkins under Dr. Roland Griffiths on Psilocybin, Imperial College under Robin Carhart-Harris on LSD and DMT, and of course, the Multidisciplinary Associate for Psychedelic Studies trailblazing work with MDMA.
Indeed, these substances seem the most likely candidates to be the next giant leap in our species’ evolution.
Time to open your minds, lawmakers.
Time to wake up to the possibilities of these substances and their role throughout history.
Time to stop rules made by ill-informed politicians who are dead determine the availability of much-needed medicines to people who are alive.
Time to catch up with this century.
As exemplified by the permission of psilocybin in Oregon and Canada in certain supervised settings, the tide has already started to turn. You and me, we just have to grab a paddle and each do our bit with our words and actions. It’s somewhat of a self-fulfilling prophecy at this point.
Responsible individual use of the classic psychedelics doesn’t affect others’ safety and rights. The substances are neither toxic nor addictive. Government has no business here.
It is your right as a human to do what you want with your body, mind and consciousness.
And if you don’t have sovereignty over your mind…
What do you have?
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