#14 — Tripping Over Prejudice: LGBTQ+ in Psychedelic Science with Dr Matthew X. Lowe

In & Through: The Onaya Podcast

Psychedelic history has a complex relationship with queerness. In 1966, Timothy Leary declared LSD a "cure for homosexuality”, and the use of psychedelics in so-called 'conversion therapy' reinforced the pathologising of queerness for years.

Times have changed, as gay and transgender rights movements intersect heavily with the world of psychedelics, but injustice and exclusion remain.

Dr. Matthew X. Lowe is a research scientist, educator and advisor, specialising in human brain function and behaviour across a range of topics in cognition, perception, mental health, psychedelics, and cannabis use. Nowadays, his focus is on marginalised and underrepresented communities in psychedelic research.

Having previously worked as a scientist at MIT, Harvard, and Stanford, he leads research at Realm of Caring, and Unlimited Sciences, two non-profit organisations focused on cannabis and psychedelics, respectively. He is also a Scientific Advisor and Lead Educator for the Oregon Psychedelic Institute.

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Links from this conversation:

• 'Long-term benefits to psychological health and well-being after ceremonial use of Ayahuasca in Middle Eastern and North African immigrants and refugees' by Matthew Lowe's team: published in Frontiers in Psychiatry (2024).
• Queering Psychedelics by the Chacruna Institute.
• Psychedelics and the LGBTQIA+ Community by Unlimited Sciences.
• Unverified archived transcript of Timothy Leary's interview with Playboy in 1966.
• LSD and Sexuality by Richard Alpert.
• Info Line by Unlimited Sciences: a free, 24-hour phone line offering research-based information on psychedelics.

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- - - EDIT (1st April 2025) - - -

After a fact-checking query from a listener regarding claims by Dr Matthew Lowe about the involvement of Richard Alpert (Ram Dass) and Timothy Leary in so-called 'conversion therapy', we have included links (above) to a paper from Alpert and an unverified but widely reported interview with Leary, as well as articles by Chacruna Institute and Unlimited Sciences.

In the published paper 'LSD and Sexuality', Alpert (who was himself queer) describes efforts to treat a bisexual man for his homosexuality. Leary is not directly implicated in 'conversion therapy' but is quoted as saying "we've had many cases of long-term homosexuals" at his centre who 'converted', and that "LSD is a specific cure for homosexuality".

Simon's shock described in the introduction about Matthew's claim regarding their involvement was not meant as definitive confirmation of it. Dr Matthew Lowe and Unlimited Sciences would be best suited to respond directly to any further queries!