Pictured above is Dr. Nick Powers
In the Black community, ecstatic release has been documented in testimonies by Zora Neale Hurston, realizing freedom in jazz clubs through alcohol, and Malcolm X’s reclamation of rhythm by way of weed and music. These moments of profound liberation serve as a powerful reminder of the potential for the Black body’s true liberation from the white gaze. Powers poses the question about the potential for psychedelics to further fuel the revolution.
It was hard to put down this book, so I tried to read it in one sitting. One needs to revisit Powers’ treatises because he takes us on a literal literary trip: merging ponderings on the history of psychoanalysis, the Black Literary Canon, the foundations of psychedelic culture in the U.S., and the racialization of the drug war.
Along the way, he grounds us in the reality of Black life in America, often over-scrutinized. His powerful prose paints a vivid picture of the elements necessary for liberation through psychedelics: set, setting, and container. As therapeutic approaches involving psychedelics gain traction, it is crucial to consider what Dr. Powers has to say about their potential impact on the liberation of Black Americans.
Editor's Note: This review was originally published in Manhattan Book Review.
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