The rave scene that emerged more than three decades ago set the foundation for the vibrant culture that exists today. Much like today, raves of the nineties and early 2000s were more than energetic, all-night parties — they were bastions of self-expression, marked by a culture that preached the principles of Peace, Love, Unity, and Respect — an ethos many of today’s ravers still stand by.
Early raves were symbols of the counterculture — from London to Goa to Chicago, ravers faced the same forms of bias as the beatniks of the 50s and hippies of the 70s: scrutiny from law enforcement, demonization from the media, and criticism in the court of public opinion. From the outsiders’ point of view, raves were dangerous places associated with rampant drug use.
And there was some truth to this perception. The rise of EDM coincided with the rise in popularity of one party drug in particular: ecstasy, the tablet form of MDMA.
A Brief History: MDMA, EDM, and the RAVE Act
The histories of the rise of MDMA and EDM are deeply intertwined, and the prevalence of substance use at electronic music events then and now cannot be ignored. While substances like MDMA can heighten the experience of the music, art, and community raves bring, they can be risky. Dehydration, anxiety, high blood pressure, and overheating are just some of the dangerous side effects of MDMA if steps aren’t taken to reduce harm and use it responsibly. Mixing it with other substances can introduce even greater risks.
As the use of MDMA rose at these events, so did fatalities, many of which were highly publicized, underscoring the dangers of MDMA use in the public eye, and validating existing biases. While correlation doesn’t necessarily equal causation, policymakers, concerned parents, and the unwitting public found the scapegoat they were looking for in raves.
That’s why policymakers first introduced the Reducing Americans’ Vulnerability to Ecstasy Act or the RAVE Act in 2002 — legislation that put the consequences of drug use and distribution on club promoters, venues, and event organizers.
The purported aim of the RAVE Act was to lower the number of drug-related fatalities at events by giving organizers a reason to curb drug use. Passed under a revised name in 2003, the legislation has since mostly done the opposite of what was intended.
Not only did the rate of drug usage at events not decrease, but the RAVE Act actually made venues more dangerous.
Afraid of being penalized and fined — venues and promoters found liable under the RAVE Act could be fined upwards of $250,000 and sentenced to up to 20 years in federal prison — many venues stopped offering medical services, drug education programs, and drug checking stations, so as not to be perceived as places where drug use was welcome.
In some places, they even stopped offering amenities like free water. Security checks became more strict, integrating drug-sniffing dogs at larger events, throwing away harmless items that could be used to conceal drugs like chapstick at smaller ones. It also drove raves back to the underground from which they came, where they were less regulated and there was more potential for harm.
Despite the intentions of the RAVE Act, drug usage at festivals and electronic music shows has not decreased. Research actually shows that substance use in festival attendee populations is higher than that of the general public.
In fact, a recent survey of EDM party attendees in New York City found that nearly one third of those surveyed used MDMA in the past year. A survey of Australian festival goers found that number to be even higher, with 73.9% of those surveyed reporting past-year MDMA usage.
Although MDMA is commonly cited as the most popular drug amongst ravers, it’s not the only substance ravers are using. According to the same study of New York City festival goers and ravers, the usage rate of LSD, ketamine, and cocaine have increased.
Are You Sure That’s Molly?
While the use of drugs has remained stagnant or increased at electronic music events, a more disturbing trend has emerged — the rise of adulterated substances. Since 2010, overdoses involving stimulants, namely cocaine, methamphetamine, and fentanyl have skyrocketed, accounting for nearly one-third of overdoses in the U.S.
Ecstasy, too, poses a high risk of adulteration. Most commonly adulterated MDMA contains synthetic cathinones — commonly known as “bath salts” — in the past decade. These substances mimic the effects of MDMA, but are often stronger and induce effects that last for shorter periods. The shorter-lived effects of these drugs can encourage users to up their dosage, increasing the risk of toxicity.
The current climate, marred with outdated, ineffective legislature and more adulterated drugs in circulation calls for better harm reduction — something that’s been on the rise behind the scenes for years now at festivals and events.
The Organizations Making Dance Floors Safer
Today, harm reduction at events and music festivals can take a few different forms. There are organizations like Bunk Police that provide drug testing kits, both on site and at home, and others like Harmonia, a harm reduction service intended to help attendees navigate difficult experiences — drug-related and otherwise.
“Harm reduction isn’t just about drug and alcohol prevention,” Emily Arnold, founder of SafeCircles, a Baltimore-area harm reduction nonprofit tells us, “It’s educating people about the dos and don’ts, it’s teaching people how to use Narcan and where to get testing kits. It’s about protecting loved ones, getting people home safely, and working with local charities.”
Harm reduction groups provide educational and other resources, drug testing kits, and foster better, healthier, safer environments for all fans with online and on-site support. Organizations like Emily’s go beyond providing resources related to substance use — many offer information and resources related to safe sex, maintaining healthy relationships, and mental health.
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Groups like these have made a huge impact on safer substance use and better experiences so far. In fact, 23.1% of festival and club attendees surveyed by NIH have tested their ecstasy in the past year.
“Instead of labeling certain decisions or behaviors as inherently ‘good’ or ‘bad,’ harm reduction acknowledges that people will continue to engage in risky activities, such as taking drugs, regardless of judgment, laws, or moral implications,” Rachel Nguyen, Project Manager at Bunk Police tells River Beats, “So instead of suggesting total abstention as the only option, it’s much more effective to encourage safer practices, education, and informed decision making.” 
Bunk Police, the organization Rachel is a part of, has been leading the charge in drug checking since 2011, when the organization’s founder Adam Auctor noted a large amount of drug use among festival attendees and a relative lack of harm reduction resources available to them.
Since then, Bunk Police has had a presence at events like Electric Forest, Lost Lands, and Hulaween and has successfully shipped their test kits to over 100 countries. They sell a variety of substance identification kits for nearly any drug imaginable and are constantly researching and perfecting their methods to minimize risk in drug culture and lower the risk of overdose and drug-related fatalities. Rachel adds about the test kits, “Don’t underestimate the power of knowing what you’re taking— these kits can actually save lives.”
And they do. Research from the University of Liverpool substantiates the claim that the presence of drug testing stations make festivals safer. Nonprofit harm reduction organization The Loop, based out of the UK, reported that almost two-thirds of festival attendees that tested their drugs with the organization during the study disposed of them when they were identified as something other than what they expected.
Another 48.7% of those surveyed as part of the University of Liverpool study reported that they intended to reduce their substance consumption even when substances matched expectations, pointing to positive effects of the presence of drug testing overall, even when the outcome was as expected. Perhaps even more notable: of all seven of the large festivals The Loop provided services at whose data fed the study, there were zero drug-related fatalities.
Looking Ahead: A Safer Future for All Fans
Bottom line is: drug use at raves and other events won’t stop. On a more global scale, we’re in the midst of a drug crisis with the rise of adulteration, and drug users of all kinds deserve to be treated with compassion and respect.
Instead of encouraging lower substance use by judging people who choose to use drugs or passing legislation that does everything but help them, we should support the harm reduction organizations that are making dance floors safer for all of us.
We should live by their example, volunteering our time if we’re able, educating ourselves about safe substance use and harm reduction, carrying naloxone, and testing our substances if we choose to partake.
We have the power to change the narrative around raves and cultivate the safe spaces they were intended to be; places where the music, beautiful communities, and the people define the culture.
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