Two more Michigan cities are moving to decriminalize the personal use and possession of entheogenic plants and fungi, as efforts to reschedule psychedelic plant medicines take shape at various levels of government across North America.
Decriminalize Nature Hazel Park, a local grassroots non-profit advocacy group, recently submitted a resolution that would make the “investigation and arrest” of those found in possession of small amounts of psychedelic substances the lowest law enforcement priority.
Meanwhile, Decriminalize Nature Grand Rapids introduced a similar resolution in its city council this past Tuesday to expand the measure, DN shared on its social media. The resolution is scheduled for a City Commission vote on September 28.
Although most psychedelic substances are categorized as Schedule I under the U.S. Controlled Substances Act (CSA), local municipalities and multiple state legislatures are proposing to decriminalize or study substances including psilocybin, mescaline, iboga, and ayahuasca.
DN Hazel Park first submitted the final draft ‘Resolution and Framework for Safe and Responsible Use’ to city council members earlier in April. The resolution was made available for public comment on September 14 by the Hazel Park City Council.
The team shared on Instagram that the city council meeting “was a success” and that they were told to “keep sending educational material to council members.”
DN Hazel Park wrote in a press release that their main goal is to redirect funding for the arrest, investigation, and prosecution of individuals for possessing or using naturally occurring psychedelics for therapeutic purposes.
“Naturally occurring Plant and Fungi medicines have been used by indigenous groups for thousands of years. Reintroducing natural remedies into our present time could possibly help people in vulnerable states heal themselves, says Shan, founder of Decriminalize Nature Hazel Park. “With the support of a community, a therapist and other credible community organizations and leaders. Being able to control my own anxiety and depression using plant medicines has been extremely beneficial. Everyone should be able to get the opportunity to try to heal themselves naturally without the fear of being prosecuted,” they add.
Meanwhile, Detroit, MI will be voting this November to decide whether to decriminalize psychedelics or not in the city. This initiative is also being led by Decriminalize Nature.
