Michigan Psychedelic Community Celebrates Entheogens and Activism
The Per Ankh House of Life is situated on a quiet street a few blocks from Woodward Avenue in Detroit, MI. Outside, it looks normal and unassuming, but once inside, the energy is bursting from the walls. The inside is colorful with murals of entheogenic art painted in purples, reds, oranges, blues, and greens. There are plants in every window, posters of mushrooms and Maria Sabina, bookshelves, and an altar.
The place feels more like a home than a church. Anyone walking in could tell that people spend time here and grow here, together. That kind of community was exactly what was on display at the Entheo Cup and Community Steward Awards on August 23rd. The event was put on by the Michigan Psychedelic Society (MPS) and Detroit Psychedelic Society (DPS) as a fundraiser to support psychedelic community and advocacy work, while recognizing pillars in the community.
The event kicked off a little past noon, with time for attendees to socialize among each other and check out the many tables of vendors and community members. The opening remarks were given by Baba MouDou Baqui, co-founder of the Per Ankh Entheogenic Church. Later, when he was asked about the church and community, he explained how he became involved.
“I’ve been very into activism and liberation work, but I knew I had to grow and be bigger than who I was. My teacher introduced me to mushrooms about 25 years ago, and I grew into a better person. I felt so powerful about how that impacted me that I had to share with my friends and the greater community,” Baqui said. “In this particular space, in Detroit, this is the center of the city, but there is so little access to information and education about psychedelics. I grew up across the street, and I’ve seen a lot in this neighborhood, so I wanted to build a house of life right in this neighborhood and rebuild life.”
Alongside his mentor, Kilindi Iyi, and other founding member, Ayana Iyi, the Per Ankh Temple and Entheogenic church was created as a humanitarian and charitable non-denominational interfaith organization, committed to development, uplifting, enlightenment, and spiritual realization through education and spiritual practices. A large majority of the practice includes understanding and safe access to entheogenic plants and fungi, with a focus on cannabis and psilocybin mushrooms.
Awards Put Mycology at the Forefront
The Per Ankh Entheogenic Church also recognizes the importance of education and research surrounding these substances, which led to a partnership with MPS and DPS. The Entheo Cup is a way for individuals or manufacturers within the area to submit samples of psilocybin-containing mushrooms for testing, where they are then judged and selected to win a variety of awards. The first awards to be given out were in the Microdose Category, judged based on mood, intensity, and overall effect. The best capsule award went to Lynx Caps, and best edible award went to Blue Mood Foods.
There were also winners for a variety of different potency categories. The winner of the Spiritual Category, also the highest potency category, was Altered Vibez with a submission of Panaeolus cyanescens / Xalapa cross, testing at an average of 26.725 mg/g of dried mushroom.
“I started experimenting with mushrooms in college and thought, ‘How can this molecule change the way my brain perceives everything?’” Travis of Altered Vibez, who preferred not to give his last name, explained. “After that, it helped me really question everything, including where things come from. This led to me needing to know what I was putting in my body. So, I started researching and cultivating on my own. It was easier than I thought, and suddenly went from a hobby to something so much more.”
As a second-time winner of the highest potency mushroom, Travis was also excited about the increased testing at this year’s cup, which previously only sent samples to one lab. This year, samples were sent to three different laboratories and averaged out for a more accurate number.
“In the past, there were less labs doing the testing, so we had way less data and research to derive from,” Shan Vicius of Detroit Psychedelic Society explained. “So now that there are more labs online, we can average out these results, and the results may be lower. These samples have been through three different labs to make sure we deliver the correct results.”
Other winners included Tryptronics for best Therapeutic potency, their “Momo Clone” coming in at 9.212 mg/g psilocybin; T3Edibles for best Recreational potency with their “TAPE” mushroom at 6.205 mg/g psilocybin; and Francis Fungus for the best Microdose potency with their Psilocybe tampanensis sclerotia at 0.791 mg/g psilocybin.
T3Edibles didn’t only win best Recreational mushroom, they also swept the floor in the awards for largest and tallest mushrooms. Their largest was 47.3 g with a length and cap width of 5.75 inches. The tallest was 10.5 inches. This isn’t their first year at the Entheo Cup. In 2023, T3Edibles also won multiple awards, which were proudly preserved and displayed at their table.
In addition to these mushroom awards, there was also a talk focused on mycology and cultivation of a variety of exotic mushrooms given by Stig Mycelia, mycologist and co-founder of Big Psych in Minnesota. He discussed a variety of species of entheogenic fungi, including the well-known Psilocybe cubensis, but expanded into how standard operating procedures for other types of mushrooms are similar, but specifics can change.
In addition to discussing basic similarities and differences between mushroom classes, Stig also discussed the duty human beings have when cultivating these fungi. He talked about the ways in which the care, time, and effort put into the growth can have effects on how the mushrooms work after harvesting. Lastly, he explained that by learning to cultivate the community can help these species thrive.
“This becomes especially important because of mushrooms like this [Psilocybe neoxalapensis] which for all intents and purposes their natural habitat is diminishing every year. So, what happens in 20 years from now when all the cloud forests are gone?” Mycelia proposed. “If we can work as a community to figure out how to grow these mushrooms, save samples and viable cultures, now we can reseed a new cloud forest where this mushroom lives on in the wild. That’s the grander picture. These mushrooms can help us a lot, but how can we help them?”
Building and Recognizing Community
The Entheo Cup and Community Steward Awards were not only about appreciating mycology, they also brought people from around the state together to recognize those who have been outstanding members of the community. Participants also learned how to mobilize to create better access to entheogenic plants and fungi. The Community Steward Awards, an idea originally by Julie Barron, founder of MPS, came to life.
“The community steward awards is an idea I had a couple years ago, and really the goal is to focus on who is doing wonderful work in our community because that’s really the point of the work we’re doing, is our community,” Barron explained before introducing the award categories and winners. “So the things we think about when we think about community stewards is the honor of building strong and sustainable foundations for our community, things like encouraging ethical organizational models, grassroots community building, service work, ensuring access for all, collaboration with as many organizations and people throughout the state that we can get.”
All the winners were nominated by other members of the community through a voting form that was created a few months before the event, and nominations were then counted by the organizers. After each award was announced, the recipients were asked to speak to the audience about what work they are doing if they felt inclined.
The award winner for Best Community Organizer was Rick Anstiss, Co-founder and Vice President of Michigan Weedsters and Secretary of the Republican Cannabis Caucus of Michigan.
“This is very kind and considerate. I love this community so much. I’m deeply ingrained in the cannabis community…,” Anstiss told the crowd. “…And early on, while all of you guys were grinding, I wanted to jump in, but I was busy with that. So, I really just want to thank everyone here. You’re still working through that quiet space where you can’t speak and tell a lot of people what you’re doing necessarily. You’re doing really good work, you’re creating things that are healing people, just like we have in the field of cannabis.”
Best Harm Reductionist was awarded to Travis Streur, mycologist and educator at T3Edibles, in addition to their several awards in the Entheo Cup. As he accepted his award, he expressed his gratitude for the community and the opportunity to become certified in potency testing earlier this year.
“I find it really important to get the accurate psilocybin and psilocin testing as dosing goes further into the future, especially for microdosing. We don’t want people out here losing their minds. There are medicinal benefits to mushrooms, and that comes with knowing what the content is in the mushroom itself,” Streur said.
Lianna Tullis-Robinson, MA, DTLLP, won Best Community Educator for her research in her doctoral counseling psychology studies. She was not present to accept the award, but later posted a video on her Instagram where she reflected on the award, sharing in the caption that the last two years have been a lot. Teary-eyed, Tullis-Robinson said, “Well, I can’t stop now! I guess I have to keep going!”
The Best Creative and Collaborative Organization went to the MPS, who originally was not going to accept any awards due to their involvement in the event. Due to an overwhelming number of nominations, the planning committee decided that they wanted to reflect the community’s vote, so the award was accepted by Toni Crocilla, PsyD, LP at Wise Mind PLLC.
In addition to these awards, another award was given for Best Community Activist to Brandon Hillaker, after he shared an emotional story about his struggle with mental health. Hillaker shared his journey with bipolar disorder, hospitalizations, and how finding mushrooms propelled him into a new life.
After having to learn how to walk, talk, and communicate with others after a suicide attempt, he shared how he’s found a combination of exercise and alternative treatments that work for him. Hillaker has begun studying psychology with the hopes of understanding how psychedelics can benefit others with bipolar disorder.
Outside the classroom, he competes in a variety of triathlons, including the recent Tri-for-Hope, a 400-mile triathlon from Hell to Paradise, MI to raise money for the Barb Smith Suicide Resource and Response Network. He recently achieved his goal to complete 11 medals for the 11 years bipolar took over his life: 10 triathlons and the Mackinac Island swim in four short months.
“I know I keep saying ‘I’ and ‘my achievements, my achievements’ but I really want everyone to understand there is no ‘I’ without the unity of ‘we,’” Hillaker stated. “I don’t know how to grow mushrooms. I use them as medicine. But without people like you, people like the Michigan Psychedelic Society, pushing and breaking that stigma that this is medicine, there would be no accomplishments.”
Entheo Cup Reaches Michigan Capitol
The keynote speaker for the Entheo Cup was District 14 Rep. Mike McFall (D), who introduced House Bill 4686 this summer. This bill would decriminalize possession of up to two ounces of psilocybin for adults with a medical record indicating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
McFall was previously on the Hazel Park City Council and voted to decriminalize entheogenic plants and fungi in the city, which passed in 2022. Now, in his second term in Lansing, McFall shared what he’s learned and how to promote better access to psychedelics. In the 2024 legislative session, the Representative had proposed House Bill 5980, which focused on broad statewide decriminalization of psilocybin for personal use and use for PTSD. This bill was taken up by committee but was never heard.
“I know it [HB 4686] isn’t full decrim, but one of the things I’ve learned in a very short time in Lansing is that if you try to bite off too big a piece of apple, or there’s too many opponents to whatever your trying to push and it’ll just die,” McFall described his thought process behind the recent legislation. “But, my goal with this is that while I’ve been focusing primarily on veterans and veteran health, this is for [all] people with PTSD.”
McFall went on to explain that the community he serves has a great need for novel treatments and there is interest from the MI-Veteran Affairs (VA) offices to use psilocybin for PTSD, evidenced by their own recommendation to a Warren, MI resident to use psilocybin as treatment. He even shared his and his husband’s own struggles with mental health, highlighting that this issue is close to his heart.
Following Rep. McFall’s discussion on the recent legislative efforts, Michael G. Smith Jr., Sergeant First Class, U.S. Army, spoke to the crowd about his PTSD diagnosis and the work he’s done with the VA. Following 21 years of service with the military, he now works with veterans as Director of the VA office in Washtenaw, MI.
His talk focused primarily on the long-term effects of PTSD, not only mentally, but also physiologically. He shared two publications that highlighted that those with PTSD went on to develop a myriad of cardiovascular diseases, including a study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, where they studied nearly 1.1 million young and middle‐aged adults and their risk for early incident atrial fibrillation (AF). They found that PTSD was associated with an increased risk for early incident AF, and development happened at a significantly earlier age than in people without PTSD.
The science behind this link makes sense. People with PTSD experience higher levels of chronic stress, which causes increased blood pressure, heart rate, and inflammatory markers. Combined with behavioral symptoms of PTSD like isolation and possible poor self-care habits, these can cause detrimental outcomes. Smith notes that the VA has put out internal publications sharing these findings, but hasn’t improved interventions for PTSD.
To end his discussion, Smit shared how current treatments like exposure therapy, while helpful for many, have a large dropout rate and only work for the time that the individual is in the therapy. Further, the programs available for veterans are 12-week-long therapies focused on depression, anxiety, or anger management. None of them focuses specifically on PTSD. Instead, he suggested that veterans and others with PTSD need a therapy that can not only stop the most severe mental PTSD symptoms, like suicidal ideation, in their tracks – but also can prevent the future development of cardiovascular disease. This is where psychedelic-assisted therapy comes in.
“Let’s get the message out about this medicine, what it can do for us in all ways, what it has done for societies in all ways for the thousands of years it’s been used and respected and caregiven,” Smith said.
Sgt. Michael Smith presenting medical research related to PTSD and cardiovascular disease at Entheo Cup in Detroit, MI.
Call to Action
After the awards were given out and the speakers finished, the hosts reminded the attendees that the fight to create access to entheogenic plants and fungi is far from over. In her closing statements, Barron reminded everyone of the unique position they are in to make positive change.
“The thing that we need to talk about [in regards to legislation] is, can we get it perfect, or do we have to do incremental steps? I think that this is a beautiful incremental step,” said Barron. “It’s not the totality of what we want to see in our state; we want more access, but it’s a beautiful and brilliant start. We have an opportunity in this state to move this new bill through the house, and the way to do that is to have everybody get involved.”