“Medicine” churches are popping up in #Texas, offering members a potential legal cover for #psychedelic rituals.

People spend thousands to learn to administer #bufo, a trendy but rare substance. Experts worry there's little oversight, leaving these groups ripe for abuse. And what Andrew Logan experienced with the Universal Shamans of the New Tomorrow left him shaken.

https://www.texasobserver.org/bufo-brooke-tarrer-universal-shamans-new-tomorrow-psychedelics/

(📸 Photo by Adam Shellooe)
#MentalHealth #Drugs #Law #Culture #psychedelics #indigenous
(Edit: Typo)

A Bad Trip with the Toad Shaman

Psychedelic churches charge thousands to teach practitioners to administer bufo, a trendy “sacrament.” But experts warn of hidden dangers.

The Texas Observer
I'm in favor of people using whatever nonaddictive psychoactive substances they want so long as they're well informed. The existing extreme restrictions placed on psychedelics are a small tragedy limiting our growth as a society and allowing their inevitable use to be more dangerous than were psychedelics accepted and educated about.
@luka No argument here but the well-informed part becomes more challenging when you have people pushing these substances as a panacea, and you also have people setting themselves up to be "experts" after they take a weekend intensive. Psychedelics can be very beneficial but there's also potential for abusive so-called teachers to hurt people, among other risks. The drug war really hurts the education part, for sure. —Kit
@TexasObserver You have a nuanced perspective that's refreshing to read. Thanks for sharing.
@luka you're welcome, thanks for engaging. I recommend checking out the group Psymposia and the first season of the podcast Cover Story which is partly about them. It influenced the editorial approache we took to this piece (even beyond Andrew's interview with them)