The Ann Arbor, Mich., City Council unanimously voted this week to essentially decriminalize a wide range of psychedelic drugs, including psilocybin mushrooms, mescaline, and ayahuasca.
"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 passed Monday says.
The resolution applies to "plants, fungi, and natural materials ... that can benefit psychological and physical wellness."
Much of the resolution is framed around the potential for psychedelic plants to treat disorders such as "substance abuse, addiction, recidivism, trauma, post-traumatic stress symptoms, chronic depression, severe anxiety, end-of-life anxiety, grief, cluster headaches, and other debilitating conditions."
...
Decriminalize Nature Ann Arbor, the group that helped usher the resolution through the Ann Arbor City Council, also cites American liberty and personal freedom in arguing for the decriminalization of psychedelic plants.
"Human beings and American citizens have an unalienable natural right to use plants of their choice," the group explains on its website.
Critics of the measure worry that the drugs could end up in the hands of kids or lead to other dangerous scenarios. The resolution attempts to address these concerns by saying it does not authorize "commercial sales or manufacturing of these plants and fungi, possessing or distributing these materials in schools, driving under the influence of these materials, or public disturbance."
...
Connect With Us