Welcome back to The Drop In, DoubleBlind’s newsletter delivering independent journalism about psychedelics straight to your inbox. 

It’s Monday. There are a plethora of songs lamenting Moon Day’s arrival after the weekend. “Blue Monday” by New Order. “Monday, Monday” by the Mama’s and the Papa’s. “Manic Monday” by the Bangles. Google tells me rapper Pooh Sheisty has a song about Monday. This day really fields a lot of hate, but it seems a bit misdirected, no? Shouldn’t all of this vitriol be directed at capitalism? No one hated Mondays before labor. Hell, “Monday” didn’t exist before the workweek was invented! I guess this is all to say: Don’t hate the day, hate the system. And if you love your Monday, it will probably kiss you back.

Today’s feature is a dispatch from Lightning In a Bottle, a whimsical electronic music festival, that featured two experts delivering a “Psychedelic State of the Union” address. We interviewed them in the dusty, 90-degree heat. Why? Because the tentacles of psychedelic culture and activism extend far beyond the social bubbles and echo chambers many of us are familiar with. But where? And who? And how? You’ll have to read the story below!

If you keep scrolling, you’ll find other pieces about ayahuasca as a performance enhancement, how to brew mushroom tea, why LAX is a massive drug trafficking hub, and so much more.

Stay groovy, amigos 🪩
Mary Carreón
Senior Editor

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What We Learned at the Psychedelic State of the Union

MAPS’ interim executive directors delivered a two-hour address on the evolving landscape of psychedelics that was equal parts education and quiet revolution.

On Memorial Day weekend, in the middle of a hot, dusty wonderland that looked like it was dreamt up by an aesthetically-inclined acid tripper — where disco balls hang from trees and art cars project sonic waves into the ether — Lightning in a Bottle hosted a Psychedelic State of the Union address. Delivered by Ismail “Izzy” Ali and Betty Aldworth, the interim co-executive directors of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), the talk wasn’t just a dispatch from the frontlines of psychedelic research and policy — it was, by all accounts, activism… but not the kind with picket signs or megaphones.

“I started the Psychedelic State of the Union [address] back in 2017 when [President Donald] Trump first took office, and we’ve done it every year since,” Izzy told DoubleBlind. “It’s evolved into a way to ask: What’s going on in the psychedelic world — and what does that mean for all of us?”

While some may argue it’s hyperbolic to label this “activism,” hosting an honest, educational discussion about psychedelics at a popular music festival — not a psychedelic conference or an academic panel — is no small feat. We don’t live in a society that readily creates space for psychedelics education, especially not on stage in a more mainstream arena or in broad daylight. Typically, the psychedelic curious are forced to scour the annals of Reddit or delve into underground community spaces to find this information. But not at LIB. And that’s what makes it sparkle. The festival has regularly handed the mic over to psychedelic harm reduction advocates.

Betty, attending her first LIB and fresh off a multi-year festival hiatus, immediately clocked what makes LIB feel distinct from other fests. “Conversations about psychedelics and safety and harm reduction and community are prioritized here,” she said. “It feels like a space where people are really looking out for each other. The types of services here are indicative of that.”

As we talked backstage at the Lighthouse stage, the sun grew hotter and the dust became stickier. It was impossible not to sweat. At this point, the crowd was darting around the festival looking for the nearest puddle of shade, repenting to the sun, begging to be spared from heat stroke. 

But the crowd at LIB doesn’t notoriously cower at the Central Valley’s daytime heat. This year’s State of the Union took place at 1:45 PM — at the peak of Ra’s most potent blaze — and drew in a crowd of over 200 people to the Crossroads stage. “People stayed the whole two hours,” Izzy said. “That’s my measure of success — how many people are there at the end. There were maybe 80 to 100 people there at the two-hour mark. People wanted to listen to what we had to say.”

The talk covered the current state of psychedelic politics and policy, along with MAPS’ public education efforts. Izzy noted that the questions people asked at the end were elevated and nuanced; a sign, he said, of just how far public psychedelic literacy has come. People want to know how to use them in the most beneficial way.

“One thing that’s become apparent over the past few years is that more and more types of people need baseline education about psychedelics,” Betty said. “Even if they’re not using them. Maybe their kid is. Maybe their patients are. Maybe their students are. So we’re trying to reach those folks with evidence-based information that helps them show up with care.”

After the talk, an ER nurse approached Betty, looking for resources. “She said, ‘How do I get more information? Because we're seeing people who are consuming excessive amounts of psychedelics and showing up in our emergency room, and we need to be better educated,’” Betty said. “That’s what we’re here for. If we’re supporting the individual in a psychedelic emergency, we’re supporting the entire emergency services center they’ve entered.”

The annual Psychedelic State of the Union address was designed to give people an entry point into various parts of the psychedelic movement. It’s a chance for people to ground themselves in where the movement stands, what’s shifting, and why it matters. It’s activism by way of orientation. “I haven’t used the word ‘activist’ to describe myself or what I do in years,” Izzy told us. “Because, in a lot of environments, it’s easier to use words that don’t scare people. But I was an activist before I was anything else, and that’s what this [address] is.”

And really, what’s more powerful than showing up at a major music festival and giving people the psychedelic 4-1-1? LIB doesn’t brand itself as a “psychedelic festival” — few do, understandably, due to liability and the general legal landscape in the US. Still, the event works with organizations like DanceSafe and Nest Harm Reduction, both of which were present this year to provide services to attendees. In the past, it also hosted the Zendo Project, a resource people could seek out during a difficult psychedelic experience. The presence of these types of organizations is, as Betty and Izzy both said, “a sign of a much safer space for [festival] attendees.”

The Psychedelic State of the Union fit seamlessly into the festival’s programming. There were panels and discussions on water activism, environmental justice, permaculture, and ecology. “Drugs are cool,” Izzy joked, “but they connect to much bigger things, like culture, land, and justice. We can’t pretend this is just about American consumers. When we talk about drug policy, we have to think about those concentric circles.”

Gil Scott-Heron said the revolution will not be televised, and we’ll add that the revolution is also largely not permitted on social media. It is, however, occurring IRL — and even in spaces like LIB.

“Creating, supporting, and nurturing a culture of education, care, and connection is its own form of activism,” Betty said. “Activism starts in person, one-to-one, and by taking care of each other.”

Sequoias, Stanford, and the Man Who Took Microdosing Mainstream

This Friday, we’re diving into the life of Jim Fadiman, the OG psychedelic researcher who once scoffed at microdosing, only to become its most vocal champion.

From tripping with Ram Dass to co-founding an entire field of psychology, Fadiman has spent six decades mapping the outer edges of consciousness. Now 85, he’s still collecting stories, publishing books, and reminding us that sometimes, raising the floor is just as powerful as lifting the ceiling.

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DoubleBlind Digs

Here are today’s recommendations to help you live more psychedelically… 

1. Want to go to Psychedelic Science 2025 in June? Intercollegiate Psychedelics is raffling off a ticket. Enter to win! Learn more here.

2. Want to dive into psychedelic ethics and safety? Leia Friedwoman is leading a discussion at the Berkshire Mushroom Festival. Learn more here.

3. Attend the Student & Rising Professionals Mixer on June 19 — a high-vibe evening of connection, celebration, and community in the psychedelic space. Expect poster awards, raffle prizes, speed networking, music, food, and good company. Hosted by IPN, OSU CPDRE, and Source Research Foundation. Proceeds support student research. Learn more here.

4. Want to see Flying Lotus, Reggie Watts, and Jim James all in one night? Lucky for you, they’re booked to perform MAPS’ Psychedelic Science Kick Off Party on Tuesday, June 17. Get your tickets here.

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