Fantastic Fungi and Her Fickle Foes: Psychedelic Use and Western Medicine's Disparate Impact on Indigenous Communities

Given recent breakthroughs in psilocybin therapy, there is a preponderance of evidence indicating that the world is on the precipice of a mental health renaissance; for the first time ever, there is confirmation of treatment that can potentially cure some of society's worst mental illnesses. However, it is in danger of being the latest "cash crop" for big pharma. For hundreds of years, indigenous communities faced backlash for their beliefs. Now, their practices are being stolen, exploited, and repackaged to serve Western medicine's needs. This paper advocates for an ethical approach to the legalization and implementation of psilocybin therapy, urging corporations to recognize and reciprocate the indigenous roots of these practices. Drawing on a critical indigenous lens, this paper explores the challenges arising from the privatization of psychedelic research and the clash with indigenous knowledge within the current U.S. intellectual property framework. It proposes ethical solutions within the psychedelic field, referencing the Convention on Biological Diversity and Nagoya Protocol as potential frameworks to address commercialization issues. This paper also argues indigenous reciprocity is a crucial marker distinguishing conscientious healthcare from pharmaceutical gluttony and that indigenous reciprocity should be a fundamental component of psychedelic medicine.
I. BACKGROUND 2 II. HOW PRIMARY SOURCES IN PSYCHEDELIC LITERATURE UPHOLD WESTERN IDEOLOGIES AND NARRATIVES 8 III.WESTERN CULTURE ENCOURAGES AND IS COMPLICIT IN COLONIALISM 14 A. The CBD and Nagoya [...]