W

hen Americans living 
on the West Coast 
woke up on Sept. 9, 

they were met with a concerning 
reality. From northern California 
all the way up through Oregon, 
the sky was an apocalyptic shade 
of reddish-orange. The western 
United States is once again 
engulfed in flames, as hundreds 
of wildfires have ravaged forests 
and disrupted the lives of millions 
throughout California, Oregon 
and Washington. While California 
generally has wildfires every year, 
this is no ordinary fire season. 

Five of the ten biggest fires 

in 
California’s 
history 
have 

happened this year, and thus 
far this fire season has claimed 
the lives of almost three dozen 
Americans, burnt millions of 
acres of forest and have displaced 
hundreds of thousands. Smoke 
from these fires has reached all the 
way to the East Coast and Europe, 
and thanks to the blazes, Portland 
recorded the world’s worst air 
quality earlier this month, forcing 
residents to remain inside. So why 
should Michiganders care about 
something so far away? Empathy 
aside, smoke from these fires 
affects our air quality, and while 
Michigan has not had large forest 
fires in its recent history, there 
have been massive fires before, 
and there likely will be again. 

Forest fires can start for 

numerous 
reasons, 
but 
the 

National Park Service estimates 
that 85% of forest fires are 
caused by humans. Specifically, 
human activities such as leaving 
campfires unattended, burning 
debris and arson are some of the 
most common causes of forest 
fires. 
These 
common 
causes 

have led many climate deniers, 
including 
President 
Trump 

himself, to claim that the record 
fires throughout the West are the 
result of bad forest management. 
In a recent press conference with 
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, 
California 
Natural 
Resources 

Secretary Wade Crowfoot and 
other 
environment 
and 
fire 

officials, 
Trump 
stated 
that 

“It’ll start getting cooler, you 

just watch” when confronted by 
Crowfoot over blaming vegetation 
management. 
After 
Crowfoot 

dryly commented that he wished 
the 
science 
agreed, 
Trump 

responded, saying “I don’t think 
science knows, actually.” This 
approach is incredibly dangerous, 
and will only contribute to even 
greater ecological destruction. 

The science behind wildfires 

is rather simple and is just a quick 
Google search away. According to 
the Center for Climate and Energy 
Solutions, fires are more likely 
to occur and grow bigger when 
there are higher air temperatures 
and drier soil conditions. Climate 
change contributes to both of 
these conditions by warming the 
earth and drying out the organic 
matter that burns, which has led 
to the number of large forest fires 
in the western United States to 
double between 1984 and 2015. The 
California state fire department 
recently added to their website 
that “warmer spring and summer 
temperatures, reduced snowpack, 
and 
earlier 
spring 
snowmelt 

create longer and more intense 
dry seasons that increase moisture 
stress on vegetation and make 
forests more susceptible to severe 
wildfire.” So yes, Mr. President, the 
science does know, actually.

Following the extremely hot and 

dry summer of 1871, forests burned 
throughout 
the 
Great 
Lakes 

region. Scientists believe that the 
fires in northeast Michigan were 
sparked by dry lightning strikes or 
even meteor showers. After the 
fires had ceased, it was estimated 
that 2,500 lives were tragically 
lost and just over 2 million 
acres of forests were destroyed. 
Michigan has suffered through 
catastrophic wildfires in the 
past and, unfortunately, climate 
models project that Michigan 
will continue to get warmer and 
drier. In 2000, Michigan had 
just over ten heatwave days per 
year. A heatwave day is when the 
temperature is higher than the 
historical average for that day and 
region. Just ten years from now, in 
2030, that number is projected to 
increase to 35. 

By 2050, summer droughts in 

Michigan are projected to triple, 
making the drought severity index 
greater than Texas’ current level. 
As temperatures increase and 
droughts become more frequent, 
Michigan becomes much more 
susceptible to forest fires similar 
to those currently devastating the 
western U.S. If something isn’t 
done to slow temperature rise, the 
California, Oregon and Washington 
fires could be just a preview of 
what the climate crisis will bring 
to Michigan and the rest of the 
Midwest. 

In a time where the planet is, quite 

literally, on fire, our elected leaders 
have failed us. While Republicans 
echo Trump’s talking points that 
the fires are due to poor forest 
management, Democrats rightly 
acknowledge that climate change is 
the leading cause of the destruction, 
but refuse to adequately meet the 
moment. The most egregious case 
of this is Newsom. He has recently 
taken to Twitter to declare that 
“climate change is REAL” while 
having approved 12 new permits for 
Chevron Corporation to continue 
hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in 
Kern County, Calif. — just north of 
Los Angeles County — bringing the 
total new fracking events to 360 for 
the year. Newsom can’t have it both 
ways. Acting in a manner that fails 
to account for science — the same 
science he claims to follow — is a 
form of climate denial. 

Staring down the monster of 

the climate crisis is something that 
many people — myself included as 
someone studying the environment 
— find incredibly intimidating. It 
can be hard to know where to start 
and often feels hopeless. Joining 
youth-led organizations such as 
Sunrise Movement or Climate 
Action Movement will bring you 
together with other like-minded 
young people who share a common 
goal. A better world is possible, we 
just have to fight for it.

J

ust more than six months 
have passed since the first 
two cases 
of COVID-19 

were confirmed in Michigan. The 
identification of these cases quickly 
prompted extreme yet necessary 
reactions, as the following day, 
University of Michigan President 
Mark Schlissel shut down the Ann 
Arbor campus and urged students 
to return home. Eleven days later, 
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued her 
Stay Home, Stay Safe order, closing 
all services deemed nonessential and 
sending the state of Michigan into 
quarantine. 

Undeniably, all of our lives have 

undergone enormous changes since 
those first cases were identified 
— and these changes naturally 
induced additional stress. Our social 
interactions are fewer and further 
between, requiring masks and social 
distancing with most, if not all, 
people outside of our households. 
Most of our classes are online, with 
those that are in person requiring 
face masks and social distancing 

upon entering campus grounds. 

Students have been advised to 

avoid out-of-area travel throughout 
the semester, including trips to 
visit family. Even if we choose to 
disregard the latter, we still live with 
the constant anxiety of exposing 
vulnerable 
family 
members 
to 

the virus spreading rampantly on 
our campus. We now live with an 
overwhelming number of rules that, 
while meant to keep us safe, inhibit 
our ability to fulfill our needs as 
inherently social creatures. 

Exacerbating 
our 
stress 

arising from the pandemic and 
our 
extremely 
limited 
social 

interactions is the chaos emanating 
from all aspects of our world. The 
wildfires currently ravaging the 
West Coast, one of which has now 
burned more than 103,000 acres, 
becoming one of the largest fires 
in Los Angeles County history, in 
addition to the Creek fire which has 
burned 304,604 acres. The National 
Hurricane Center is, for the second 

time in history, starting to use Greek 
letters to label this year’s hurricanes 
because they exhausted their list of 
traditional names.

Furthermore, this summer was 

characterized by protests as much 
as it was by the pandemic, with a 
much needed anti-racism movement 
finally gaining popularity by virtue 
of the leaders of Black Lives Matter 
and spurred by recent incidents of 
police brutality. Closer to home, the 
fall semester welcomed strikes by the 
Graduate Employees’ Organization 
and the residential advisors of 
University 
Housing 
regarding 

university reopening plans and 
policing on campus. 

Throughout all of this turmoil, 

we, as students, are still trying to deal 
with the typical stresses of college 
life: maintaining our GPA, involving 
ourselves in student organizations, 
applying for jobs and internships 
and planning for our future after 
graduation. The immense weight of 
all of this, coupled with the chaos of 
the external world, is indisputably 
harmful to our mental health. 

Prior to the pandemic, one in 

five 
college 
students 
reported 

experiencing 
one 
or 
more 

diagnosable mental disorders; during 
the pandemic, the rate of depression 
among college students was found to 
have increased. This isn’t shocking, as 
so much is yet to be known about the 
pandemic and the coronavirus itself, 
making this an inherently anxiety-
inducing 
situation. 
Additionally, 

students are left to worry whether 
the quality of the education that they 
are paying so much for will remain 
the same when received over Zoom. 
Even more, graduating students are 
anxious about whether they will be 
able to find a job upon graduation. 

Now more than ever, it’s crucial 

that we take care of our mental 
health. Mental health issues are 
associated with twice the likelihood 
of dropping out of school entirely, and 
with all of the chaos that currently 
characterizes 
our 
campuses, 

headlines and news feeds, college 

students are bound to experience 
more mental struggles than they 
have in the past. Consequently, the 
coming months will see a surge 
of students seeking mental health 
services, potentially overwhelming 
the 
University’s 
Counseling 

and 
Psychological 
Services 
— 

which already faces the issue of 
understaffing, leading to long wait 
times for students in need. 

It’s important to note, however, 

that CAPS is still open to students 
during the COVID-19 pandemic, 
with both in-person and virtual 
options available. At the time of 
writing this column, the current 
wait time for the next available initial 
consultation is 15 business days. 
While this is a long time for those 
seeking mental health services, there 
are emergency resources available as 
well — and it’s still worth scheduling 
the initial consultation if it means that 
you will eventually end up receiving 
the help that you need. Outside 
of CAPS, the Wolverine Support 
Network, a student-led organization, 
offers virtual weekly groups meant 
to empower its members to support 
each other’s well-being. 

Still, though, the University must 

place more emphasis on recruiting 
counselors and specialists so that 
this wait time can be reduced. 
Until then, as we enter the colder 
months, which already tend to see 
increases in the number of people 
seeking mental health support, we 
must do what we can to take care of 
ourselves. Try to keep a consistent 
routine, talk about how you’re 
feeling with someone you trust 
and make a goal to do something 
for yourself each day, even if it’s 
something small. As always, be 
sure to check in with those that you 
care about — they’re probably going 
through something similar. 

9 — Wednesday, October 7, 2020
Opinion
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

The psychedelic renaissance: discovery or 

appropriation?

LILY CESARIO | COLUMN

The West Coast is on fire: Here’s why 

Michiganders should care

ALEXANDER NOBEL | COLUMN

Elayna Swift can be reached at 

elaynads@umich.edu.

Mental wellness deserves attention now 

more than ever

ELAYNA SWIFT | COLUMN

W

ith the Decriminalize 
Nature 
movement 

happening in Ann 

Arbor and other cities around 
the country and the birth of 
psychedelic research centers at 
major universities like Johns 
Hopkins and UC Berkeley, it 
seems as if the United States 
is entering a new wave — what 
some are calling the psychedelic 
renaissance.

While both new research 

and ancient wisdom continue 
to point to the healing potential 
of entheogenic medicines for 
mental and physical ailments, 
the question remains: To what 
extent are psychedelics just 
assimilation of old medicine? 
If we are to create a healthy 
and sustainable relationship 
with these substances in years 
to come, we must not turn a 
blind eye to their history, both 
dark and light. 

When colonization of the 

Americas began in 1492, so did 
the commodification of plants 
like tobacco, cacao and coca 
by moneyed interests. Once 
regarded and used as sacred 
medicines, these substances 
were at first feared, then 
eventually 
watered 
down, 

processed and commodified 
for European markets, losing 
their cultural and medicinal 
value in the process. While it 
may be true that cigarettes, 
chocolate 
and 
cocaine 

are addictive, it should be 
recognized that their plant 
derivatives, as they were used 

before colonization, were 

not.

As the tobacco, chocolate 

and cocaine trade have since 
blossomed into multibillion-
dollar 
industries, 
so 
have 

societal illnesses of addiction 
and incarceration; from the 
dire health consequences of 
cigarette use, to the chocolate 
industry’s reliance on child 
labor, to the drug war’s brutal 
impact 
on 
Colombia, 
the 

way in which U.S. citizens 
consume 
these 
substances 

today is both dangerous and 
counterproductive.

While the U.S.’s solution to 

addiction has largely been to 
enforce stricter drug laws, it 
is clear now that this policy 
is not only ineffective but also 
dangerous, costly and racist. 

Since the 1960s, politicians 

have argued that stricter drug 
laws are the solution. Yet 
a top adviser for the Nixon 
administration even admitted 
that the war on drugs began 
as a political tactic against 
antiwar leftists and Black 
people. Indeed, drug laws 
have 
been 
enforced 
more 

harshly for Black and Latinx 
communities than for white 
communities. Today, people 
of color, despite equal rates of 
use, are 13.4 times more likely 
to be imprisoned than white 
people due largely to current 
drug laws; additionally, the 
number of Black men in prison 
today (792,000) equals the 
number of enslaved men in 
1820. The war on drugs itself 
has even been referred to by 
the American Civil Liberties 
Union and others as “The New 
Jim Crow.” 

Despite its disproportionate 

and 
harmful 
impact 
on 

communities of color, the war 
on drugs has been a failure 
as far as addiction rates go. 
Of the nearly 21 million U.S. 
citizens living with at least 
one addiction today, 9 in 10 
will not receive treatment. 
Of the people who are able 
to afford and complete rehab 
programs, only about 30% will 
have success in treating their 
addiction. 

Given this low access and 

quality 
of 
treatment, 
U.S. 

citizens are being increasingly 
drawn outside of the country 
in search of other options. In 
the realm of psychedelics, one 
of the most notable options 
is Ibogaine therapy, which, 
though originally used as an 
ancient and sacred medicine 
in West Africa, has emerged 

as a glimmer of hope for 
its potentially risky, often 
unregulated, yet powerful use 
in treating serious addictions 
to 
substances 
like 
heroin 

and opium. On one hand, 
success stories boast of its 
compelling ability to address 
the root causes of addiction 
through a psychedelic journey 
inside 
one’s 
self. 
On 
the 

other, evidence is still largely 
anecdotal; a deeper look into 
success 
rates 
reveals 
that 

relapse still poses a challenge 
to long-term recovery. 

In this light, while our 

new cultural awareness of 
psychedelics may represent 
hope, our attitudes also point to 
a long history of colonization. 
Had the sacredness of these 
medicines 
been 
considered 

at 
the 
beginning 
of 
the 

colonization era, perhaps the 
harmful 
commodification 

and addiction patterns we 
see today could have been 
avoided. Additionally, as we 
proceed with the new science 
of psychedelics, we must also 
recognize 
that 
these 
new 

discoveries are in many ways 
rediscoveries 
of 
traditional 

medicines and spiritual rites 
of 
passage 
for 
indigenous 

communities.

In the meantime, as we 

continue to explore potential 
treatments like Ibogaine for 
addiction, it is worth looking 
into a deeper understanding 
of 
how 
traditional 
use 

could improve not only the 
efficacy of treatment but also 
our relationships with the 
people who have used these 
medicines for thousands of 
years. 

As we move forward, we 

should keep in mind that if we 
do not acknowledge our past 
and act differently, we may 
only be bandaging wounds 
that 
require 
much 
deeper 

healing.

Lily Cesario can be reached at 

lcesario@umich.edu.

Alexander Nobel can be reached at 

anobel@umich.edu.

JENNA SCHEEN | CONTACT CARTOONIST AT JSCHEEN@UMICH.EDU

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