True psychonauts have known for quite some time now that an actual psychedelic revolution is slowly emerging. After cannabis was legalized in several American states, the country now seems to be ahead of many other countries in regards to other psychedelics as well. Ann Arbor, a city in the state of Michigan, voted unanimously last week to decriminalize a wide variety of psychedelics, including magic mushrooms, mescaline and ayahuasca.

“To give some perspective, Johns Hopkins, a leading medical research university, has just established a $17 million research center dedicated solely to researching the benefits of these compounds, because they have realized the tremendous potential of these chemicals”

Psychological and physical well-being

“The Mayor and City Council hereby declare that it shall be the policy of the City of Ann Arbor that the investigation and arrest of persons for planting, cultivating, purchasing, transporting, distributing, engaging in practices with, or possessing Entheogenic Plants or plant compounds which are on the Federal Schedule 1 list shall be the lowest law enforcement priority for the City of Ann Arbor”, the resolution stated. This applies to “plants, fungi and natural materials that can promote psychological and physical well-being”.

Much of the resolution is aimed at examining the effects of some psychedelic agents to treat disorders such as ‘substance abuse, addiction, relapse, trauma, post-traumatic stress symptoms, chronic depression, end-of-life anxiety, grief, cluster headaches, and others debilitating disorders’, the policy said. Currently there is insufficient scientific evidence to make such statements and confirm these effects, but that’s exactly the reason why many scientists are so eager to research these products.

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Therapeutic effects

In an interview with an American news channel, city councilor Jeff Hayner talks about his belief in the therapeutic effect of some of these psychedelics. “We had a caller last night who said that using mushrooms has changed his life. It was the only thing that helped him, very moving”. Numerous studies are currently underway to demonstrate the potential potential of certain psychedelic agents, including magic mushrooms.

Zachary Ackerman, Ann Arbor City Councilor, pointed out at Monday night's meeting that the future is bright for psychedelic research. "This is a serious topic with potentially serious benefits," Ackerman said. "To give some perspective, Johns Hopkins, a leading medical research university, has just established a $17 million research center dedicated solely to researching the benefits of these compounds, because Johns Hopkins and their donors have realized the tremendous potential of these substances.”.

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‘Natural right to use plants of our choice’

Decriminalize Nature Ann Arbor, the group that helped usher in the resolution through the Ann Arbor City Council, also cites American freedom and personal freedom in its advocacy of the decriminalization of psychedelic plants. “Humans and American citizens have an inalienable natural right to use plants of their choice,” the group explains on its website. Ann Arbor follows suit from other US cities that have legalized psilocybin mushrooms, including Denver and Oakland and Santa Cruz in California.

Oregon Public Broadcasting also reports that Oregon residents will vote in November on an initiative to enable the use of psilocybin in the state. It would make Oregon the first state in America to legalize any use of the drug.