Inside the 2023 Ann Arbor psychedelic shroom fest at the University of Michigan September 17, 2023 - MLive

ANN ARBOR, MI — “I got live peyote!” a mobile vendor pulling a wagon full of psychedelic plants and shrooms called out on the University of Michigan Diag on Sunday, Sept 17.
“Mr. Bear,” as he goes by, then pulled out some of his various products, including a baby peyote cactus in a small pot and a bag full of potent Tidal Wave psilocybin mushrooms.
He was just one of the many entrepreneurs unofficially hawking their goods at Ann Arbor’s third-annual Entheofest, a Hash Bash-style festival celebrating all the entheogenic plants and fungi Ann Arbor effectively decriminalized in 2020.
Baggies full of shrooms could be had for $40 on Sunday, while shroom grow kits sold for $30.
University of Michigan police stood watch over the event, which was attended by hundreds of people, many in shroom-themed attire. The festivities included musical entertainment and speeches by activists and elected officials who support broad decriminalization of the hallucinogenic natural substances that are still illegal under state and federal law.
It was a mostly chill affair and police reported no arrests or issues of concern.
Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit was among the afternoon’s speakers and reassured the crowd they had nothing to worry about if they were partaking.
“The great news is, for the third year in a row, nobody’s got to worry about prosecution afterward,” he said, noting it remains his policy not to prosecute anyone for using, possessing or cultivating entheogenic plants and fungi, which he described as medicine that helps people.
“This job that I have requires tough choices. This was not one of them,” Savit said of his stance.
One of the organizing groups for Sunday’s event was the Student Association for Psychedelic Studies at UM. Group president Emma Mead, a social work graduate student, said she’s been interested in the field of psychedelic studies since she was 16, when her silver-haired and ponytailed psychiatric mentor sat her down and raved about the therapeutic benefits being seen in research involving psilocybin, MDMA and ketamine.
“Continuing to watch this research unfold, especially here at the University of Michigan, has only deepened my interest in psychedelic therapies,” Mead said.
Through her late teens and early adulthood, she felt a need to tiptoe around those interests, always worried she would be labeled a druggie or a burnout, she said.
“This experience has motivated me to challenge the stigma around psychedelics, as well as spread awareness and education about their potential benefit,” she said.
SAPS was founded five years ago by three UM social work graduate students
“Our mission has been and continues to be to expand objective awareness and provide opportunities for education and discussion about all things psychedelics, including the newest research, therapeutic uses and approaches, legal and political developments, ethics and issues surrounding privilege, oppression, diversity and social justice,” Mead said.
SAPS has hosted a number of events over the years, including networking dinners, educational talks and movie screenings. And last year, Mead said, SAPS was excitingly recognized as the official student group of the Michigan Psychedelic Center, also known as M-PsyC, a new multidisciplinary team at UM that’s focused on psychedelic neuroscience and therapy.
“M-PsyC is a university-funded center that represents a breakthrough in making psychedelic research more mainstream, rigorous and accessible at the University of Michigan,” Mead said, adding it’s been exciting to see the center open and it gives her hope the next generation of curious young adults won’t have to tiptoe around their interests in psychedelics.
M-PsyC has been a significant funder of SAPS, Mead said, expressing thanks for the support, as well as the work of researchers, advocacy groups and policy makers.
“It’s great to see so many people interested in this movement,” she said, looking out over Sunday’s crowd.
“I appreciate all the work we’re all doing here today together,” she said. “It’s important that we continue to take positive strides toward understanding and educating about the risks and benefits of psychedelics, as well as promoting ethical and safe accessibility.”
Some of Sunday’s shroom vendors said they hope the next step for the not-yet-legal industry is legalization and regulation with laboratory testing for potency and contaminants, like there is now for marijuana. Some made assurances to prospective buyers Sunday that they have their products tested.
Among the officials who spoke at the event was Washtenaw County Commissioner Yousef Rabhi, D-Ann Arbor, who offered an enthusiastic endorsement of psychedelics.
“Power to the people! Power to the planet! Power to the plants!” he yelled out to conclude a high-energy speech.
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