Ayahuasca and Religious Freedom - Andrew Michaels

UWP Ep174 - In this episode, I spoke with Andrew Michaels. I got to know Andrew when he came and worked with us. He’s an interesting guy with an interesting story. He is a lawyer by trade and recently released and will publish a paper entitled Ayahuasca and Religious Freedom. This is an important and prescient topic as ayahuasca is being brought to and worked with in the United States. Currently it is illegal and classified as a Schedule 1 drug. However there is now case law and precedent of groups attaining religious exemption under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. We spoke about this process, the case history, why it important, some of the potential drawbacks, and his outlook moving forward. It was a really interesting conversation and I hope you all enjoy it.
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Andrew's Bio: “Andrew Michaels is a law professor at the University of Houston Law Center, and the author of "Ayahuasca and Religious Freedom" forthcoming in Pepperdine Law Review. He is an expert in intellectual property law, as well as the law of religious exemptions for Ayahuasca use in the United States under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. He aims to help guide the law regulating Ayahuasca use in the United States to develop in ways that allow and encourage the respectful and careful ceremonial use of this powerful brew..”

To learn more about or contact Andrew, including his paper, visit his website at: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4988709
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To view the recent documentary, Sacred Tobacco, about my work, visit: https://youtu.be/KB0JEQALI_w

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I will be guiding our upcoming 2026 plant medicine dietas with my colleague Merav Artzi (who I interviewed in episode 28):
• January 5–12 — Remote Online Dieta
• February 16–March 16 — Sacred Valley, Peru.
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