California is moving toward legalizing a set of psychiatric drugs. On Tuesday, June 1, Senate passed Bill 519 in California, a bill that legalizes the individual right to certain psychedelic substances, including psilocybin, DMT, ibogain, mescaline, LSD, ketamine, and MDMA. It does not decriminalize the sale of psychodelix. To sign into law, the bill still has to be passed by the House and get the final finger from California Governor Gavin Newsom.
There has been a lot of encouragement in recent years to demonstrate how psychedelic drugs have the potential to treat an array of mental health problems. The bill is not only optimistic about making these treatments more accessible, but also aimed at ending the “racist war on drugs and its failed and destructive policies,” in the words of Senator Scott Winer (D-San Francisco). ) Who wrote the law. Senator Vienna said in a press release, “Psychedelics show great commitment in helping people deal with complex trauma, depression, anxiety and addiction.”
“It doesn’t make sense to criminalize the use of psychology. The war on drugs has failed us and criminalizing these substances does not make anyone safe. Now is the time to move away from failed drug crime principles to science- and health-based approaches. The passage of the SB519 to the California Senate is a huge milestone for this legislation, and I am thrilled that more and more people are seeing the benefits of decriminalizing psychedelics.” In California, Santa Cruz and Oakland are two cities that have previously passed bills that decriminalize the personal use of psychedelics. Denver, Colorado, also reversed the move in 2019.
As touched earlier, the move toward the decriminalization of psychiatrists in the United States and beyond has been driven by various forces. The failure and hypocrisy of the “war on drugs” is a big one. Far from protecting and healthy communities, the policy has only deepened inequality and unfairly identified marginalized groups. Another big reason is the emerging science that has highlighted the potential therapeutic uses of psychedelics. A seemingly endless reel of recent research has shown that some psychodelixes – especially psilocybin, LSD, ketamine and MDMA – can be used to treat mental health problems, such as anxiety, anti-depressant, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and Addiction.
