Between leaving the laboratory of Albert Hoffman in 1943 and being banned in 1966, LSD was used by psychiatrists to unlock the subconscious and, covertly, in secret military tests as a combat and interrogation tool.
Since worldwide recreational use of the drug began in the 1960s, it has been inextricably linked to Hippy counter-culture where it was championed as a way of resetting humanity to make the world a better place.
As a result, we’ve lost sight of the way that LSD is just used for fun by a whole range of ordinary yet curious people, with little interest in changing the world. Whether demonised by politicians or romanticised by rebellious ‘psychonauts’, this powerful consciousness-altering drug has an alternative, ‘people’s history’, which this talk will explore.
Since worldwide recreational use of the drug began in the 1960s, it has been inextricably linked to Hippy counter-culture where it was championed as a way of resetting humanity to make the world a better place.
As a result, we’ve lost sight of the way that LSD is just used for fun by a whole range of ordinary yet curious people, with little interest in changing the world. Whether demonised by politicians or romanticised by rebellious ‘psychonauts’, this powerful consciousness-altering drug has an alternative, ‘people’s history’, which this talk will explore.