Today we're hopping in the time machine to examine the interesting & influential history of MDMA, aka Ecstasy, Molly or Adam. What began as a legal substance used in the therapist's office inevitably made its way to the recreational market where it was placed in Schedule I for decades and has now come full circle, being approved for clinical trials in treating PTSD & other mental illnesses. What happened along the way left a neon flashing, bass bumping mark on the collective American psyche.
Many folks don't know that MDMA was first used in the 1950's by the CIA in its covert MK-ULTRA experiments on soldiers, mental patients, orphans, prisoners & other wards of the State. That's understandable: The experiments were highly classified & much of the documentation containing details about their outcomes was destroyed. We'll revisit this later.
So our story begins in earnest in the 1960's with MDA--methylenedioxyAMPHETAMINE--which was popular among hippies & in the gay bathhouses before its sister drug MDMA gained widespread popularity. (MDA is like a longer-acting, more psychedelic version of MDMA). MDA was used in clinical practice by underground therapists including psychedelic proponent Leo Zeff until its neurotoxicity was discovered. Zeff then began searching for another alternative and, since LSD had already been banned, he decided on MDMA in 1976 after famous chemist Alexander Shulgin discovered its benefits in the mid-70s. (MDMA is neurotoxic but less so than MDA).
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| Chemist Alexander "Sasha" Shulgin in his lab |
From 1975 to 1979, MDMA started popping up in street drug samples in more than 10 U.S. states, with the West Coast becoming the major "hot spot" of use. Curiously, it was banned in Canada in 1976 which means our Northern neighbors had already caught onto what we were just starting to learn: that Ecstasy was some seriously enjoyable stuff. Americans were likely taking it at small house parties, on the beach & at other intimate gatherings long before it became the true "party drug" it's known as today. According to the book "Ecstasy: The Complete Guide" by Julie Holland, it's estimated that 10,000 doses of MDMA had been consumed in the U.S. in 1976. By 1985 that number would jump to 30,000 doses per month.
It was clear that MDMA, rebranded "Ecstasy" by a savvy dealer to increase marketability, was going to be the hot new drug of the '80s. But one club in the unlikely location of Dallas, TX, became notorious for its popularization of the drug.
MDMA Hub #1: Dallas, TX
The Starck Club was nicknamed "the Studio 54 of Texas," and for good reason. While Studio 54 was infamous for cocaine, Quaaludes & disco, The Starck Club became known for a new drug called Ecstasy & a burgeoning genre of electronic music called House, short for "Warehouse". Ecstasy was advertised and sold at the bar openly because, until 1985, it was perfectly legal. Granted, this was incredibly stupid knowing how the DEA operates in this country but you had to be there I guess. The Starck was designed by famous designer Philippe Starck & co-owned by crooner Stevie Nicks. It quickly became Ground Zero for the newest electronic music, the city's gay community & all the cool (read: rich & famous) people. It even had elitist guards outside the entrance turning people away a la Studio 54.
It was also instrumental in getting MDMA banned in 1985 when the DEA raided the club during one of their regular business nights, setting in motion the club's eventual demise. But for those few glorious years, patrons young and old (some underage) could dance to their hearts' content in the Starck's deliberately cooled chambers while rolling on E & watching live shows by Grace Jones, Madonna, Prince, Cyndi Lauper or any number of other big-name stars of the day. George W. Bush was even photographed there as was the Prince of Monaco. Wonder what they were up to?
Here's an excellent documentary about the Starck Club for you history buffs:
MDMA Hub #2: UK via Ibiza
Ecstasy then made the jump across the pond in the late '80s where it birthed a new subgenre of House music: Acid House. It's said the drug came to the UK via Ibiza with some of the Rajneeshi cult members who had fled from Osho's red robed cult in Oregon after the infamous Salmonella bioterrorism attack at a local salad bar. (Random af, right?) Then in 1987, a shipment of over 15,000 pills was brought in from Amsterdam by people close to the always-smashed band Happy Mondays. This giant supply fueled the rise of Acid House music in the North of UK according to someone close to the band.
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| Headlines from the UK's "Second Summer of Love" |
Meanwhile in the nightclubs the "in" style started to change. The once-macho, hard drinking Rugby lads were suddenly seen sporting long hippie locks, silk pajamas, fezes & colorful accessories. Music from Detroit & Chicago poured in & complemented the newly popular Acid House genre that was borne of MDMA-fueled dance frenzies, cuddle puddles & sweaty nights of smiling 'til your face hurt. This culminated in the Second Summer of Love '88/'89 in the UK, which took its name from the original Summer of Love in '69. While I wasn't there, I assume the kids of the time must've thought they'd discovered the new revolutionary drug just as the hippies had with LSD. In a way they were right.
The Spread of Rave Culture in the U.S.
Of course Americans are always late to the party, but when raves finally caught on they hit big, becoming the dominant drug scene for all of the '90s.
The first American underground parties in the late '80s and early '90s were held in San Francisco and NYC, where DJ Scotto was pivotal in establishing the huge underground festivals. He hosted New York's first rave at The Ritz--former home of Studio 54--with Moby among its live performers. DJ Frankie Bones soon launched his own raves throughout New York City, increasing their exposure and crowd size. On the West Coast, the Bay Area was a rave hub for years. Crowds of up to 20,000 people would congregate as the city had no curfew.
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| Some early '90s American ravers enjoying themselves |
Of course Ecstasy wasn't a requirement at raves but there's no denying its central influence on rave culture. And so much culture was created around the rave scene, particularly in the music arena. Electronic House music and its endless sister genres like Drum 'n Bass, Gabber, Trance & Dubstep rose to prominence in the rave scene, as did the Kandy Kid style of clothing. The slogan PLUR: Peace, Love, Unity, Respect took off & provided general ground rules for ravergoers who typically shunned alcohol & hard drugs like crack or heroin in favor of Ecstasy. (Alcohol was banned outright at some raves). And unlike in those other drug scenes, there was rarely if ever any fighting, assault or rape at these events unless someone was on another substance.
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| Kandy Kid fashion |
All of this remained fairly underground until about 1992 when mainstream media started wringing their hands about "the dangers of raves". But the influence on popular music and culture had already started snowballing. Popular bands like Soul II Soul, Neneh Cherry, Stereo MC's, Crystal Waters, Real McCoy, EMF, Ace of Base & Black Box incorporated the techno sound & rave aesthetic to great effect. Try as they might, that's something no drug prohibitionist could contain. Kids decked out in baggy pants, goggles, pacifiers, Kandy bracelets & other rave attire started popping up on popular talk shows of the day as well as fashion runways, cementing the mainstreaming of this once underground phenomenon once & for all.
This was all a very welcome change for kids who grew up in the Reagan era of crack, AIDS, hair metal & Just Say No propaganda. It was a new day, a new administration, a new scene & it was all fueled by a new substance: Ecstasy.
Coming Full Circle
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| Patient holds prescribed dose of MDMA in PTSD trial |
MDMA has continued to be a staple on the recreational drug market throughout its time as an illegal substance, sold both on the street & the dark net. But recently a push for FDA approval of the drug as a therapy tool has taken hold. Organizations like MAPS have consistently petitioned for it to be re-scheduled so it can be used to treat conditions ranging from PTSD to end-of-life anxiety to autism in adults, which preliminary studies have shown it extremely promising for. Not shocking since the drug got its start in the therapist's chair as a tool to help patients open up & connect. Unlike antidepressants which need to be taken daily & can cause withdrawals upon cessation, MDMA can be taken a few times to achieve peak therapeutic effects. This offers a clear benefit to patients (though maybe not to greedy pharmaceutical companies who would rather patients rely on a daily dosing regimen for profit reasons).
Whether you prefer to use it as a lighthearted social lubricant or an introspective therapy tool, MDMA is a unique drug with limitless potential when taken responsibly. Its journey from medical tool to illegal "forbidden" substance and back again just drives home how arbitrary & pointless our drug laws are. Actually, the fact that it was used covertly by the CIA on unwitting subjects before the effects or risks were even known just goes to show how governments can get away with ANYTHING while the rest of us rot in prison for doing the same thing with consent. For all the hand-wringing they do about Ecstasy deaths, barely a whisper is made over the fact that they killed poor Harold Blauer with an overdose of MDA in one of their covert experiments while he was seeking help for depression in a psychiatric facility. And he's just one of the few cases we know about. God only knows how many more were murdered in similar experiments.
To believe that drugs should be illegal for common people while government & intelligence agencies are allowed to possess & administer them as they see fit is to make gods out of men & subservient slaves out of the populace. Learn from history or be doomed repeat it. And in this case, history is not something we should aim to repeat.
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