“Don’t Kill My Buzz, Man!” – Explaining the Criminalization of Psychedelic Drugs
Oregon Undergraduate Research Journal June 1, 2021 DOI: 10.5399/uo/ourj.19.1.2 via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractPsychedelic drugs were extensively researched in 1950s U.S. psychiatry, found non-addictive, safe, and potentially therapeutic for various conditions. Their possession was criminalized federally in 1968, stifling medical research and leading to harsher penalties than for more dangerous drugs like methamphetamine. Most scholars attribute this to a moral panic in the late 1960s, but this essay argues that explanation overlooks key political processes. Instead, early 20th-century temperance advocates had already instilled an anti-drug moral framework in American culture. In the early 1960s, safety concerns and professional biases led mainstream psychiatrists to reject therapeutic psychedelic use. These factors together caused both moral panic and severe criminalization, but the moral panic itself did not cause the criminalization.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Criminalization Moral panic Criminology Possession linguistics Testimonial |
| Citations | 2 |
| Key finding | Psychedelic criminalization resulted from an existing anti-drug moral framework and professional psychiatric rejection of therapeutic use, not solely from a late-1960s moral panic. |
Abstract
In the 1950s, psychedelic drugs were the subject of extensive psychiatric research in the United States. By 1960, they had been found to be non-addictive, to have remarkable safety profiles, and to potentially be able to treat a range of psychological conditions. However, in 1968, the possession of psychedelics was criminalized by the US federal government. Consequently, medical research has been stifled, and today the possession and distribution of psychedelics are punished more severely than for more dangerous recreational drugs such as methamphetamine. Most scholars argue that psychedelics were criminalized due to a “moral panic” in the late 1960s. However, this theory overlooks several important aspects of the political process that led to psychedelic criminalization. This essay takes an alternative stance. First, early 20th century temperance advocates instilled an anti-drug moral framework into the American cultural consciousness. Then, in the early 1960s, safety concerns and professional biases led most mainstream psychiatrists to reject the therapeutic use of psychedelics. These factors interacted to cause both a moral panic and severe criminalization, but the moral panic did not itself cause criminalization.