10 Calls to Action: Toward an LGBTQ-Affirmative Psychedelic Therapy

Alexander Belser, Ph.D.

To my friends in the psychedelic community: we have rainbow skeletons in our closet. Many people do not realize psychedelic medicines were historically used as “conversion therapies” to treat lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people to become cisgender heterosexuals. ^1 2Psychedelics were employed as tools of oppression targeting LGBTQ people in anti-therapeutic ways. We have yet to reckon with the historical harms inflicted on sexual minority people, as many of those harms continue to be perpetrated today.  It is the aim of this short article to educate about or past failings, describe our current shortcomings, and offer constructive actions for the future... continue reading.