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Vice Blog

LONDON - SOMALI SALAD

Khat is an African shrub that contains herbal amphetamines and makes you feel ramped up and chatty when you chew it. Studies of native communities in Somalia—where up to 80 percent of the men chew it on a daily basis—have found that long-term use can lead to psychosis and violent behavior. Hmmmm. Anyways, it's been classified as a controlled substance in a bunch of places but, despite periodic attempts to ban it in the UK, it's still legal here and you can pick up a bundle for a scant ¬£5 (the same load costs $80 in New York). I decided to hit up a local khat café and see what all the hubbub was about before some dickhead councilors finally got around to criminalizing it.

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There are several khat cafes or "mafrishis" across London. I went to one in Finsbury Park that also doubles up as an internet café. The Somali guys in there just sit around all day and all night, gnawing through bales of the stuff and hitting on the Polish girls who come in to check their email. They sold me two bags for ¬£10.

The khat comes wrapped in a banana leaf to keep it moist, thereby preserving the psychoactive power of the plants. The bags I got were pretty big and contained the tips of a dozen plant stalks, probably grown in Kenya and then flown to London, the major transit route for khat smuggled into North America.

I picked off a dozen or so leaves and put them in my mouth. I worked them into a wad between my teeth, chomping down, sucking and swallowing the juices. It tasted bitter and planty, pretty much what you'd expect of a shrub. After ten minutes I wasn’t feeling anything and beginning to wonder whether or not I’d been sold some dodgy shit. I suspected this khat might be cut with garden hedge.

After another ten, I spit the bits out, rinsed and started over with a new mouthful. This time I picked more of the darker, redder leaves which are supposed to be more potent. Five minutes later I started feeling a mild peppiness and my heartbeat quickened. It wasn't crazy, more like the rush you’d get from drinking two cans of coke.

The Somali custom is to drink sweetened black tea while taking khat, but I decided to go to the pub and drink lots of beer instead. After every pint I would go into the toilets, spit out the chewed-up leaves, and stuff some more foliage into my cheek.

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By hour two I was definitely hepped up. I was being very talkative and I kept feeling rushes go up my back. I was drunk and high and had flecks of emerald mush lodged in my gums, but I was on great form. My storytelling was more excited and my putdowns were cheekier.

After three hours of drinking beer and doing khat-bumps every 30 minutes my neck was taut, my jaw was tightened, and my left leg was twitching. I was also acting really cocky. I felt certain that I could chat up any chick and win any argument. Instead of pretending to throw a punch as a joke, I got all hyper and threw a chair. I don’t remember much after that until I woke up with a hangover the next morning. I don't think I machete'd anyone, but by all accounts I was being even more of a cunt than usual.

To try and figure out what all I'd done to my brain, I spoke to Abdul Ahmed, a Somali mental health counselor who specializes in khat abuse…

*Vice: Considering that it basically turns you into an asshole with green crap in his teeth, why are Somalis so into khat?*
Abdul Ahmed: We use it to socialise. We think of it like going to the pub or having a cup of tea. Somalis turn to khat because it’s so widespread in the community. About 80 percent of males chew it and 30 percent of female community chew it. It has a massive following in the Yemeni community as well. Some Kenyans, but the Yemeni are really the hardcore.

At first I thought it wouldn’t work but then I definitely noticed a difference.
It’s a stimulant drug, so basically it makes you feel more awake and more alert and easier to function. I used to chew myself, but I realised I didn’t need it. I started thinking more about Islam, and going to Mosque, and I realised that khat is haraam, like alcohol or cigarettes. But most people don’t see it that way.

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I chewed through two bags over about ten hours. Is that a lot or a little?
Hardcore is around about six to ten hours a day chewing. And this is at night, when they should be resting. So of course you’re not going to feel like getting up or going to work the next day. Some people might have been chewing for 40 years like that.

When do people normally chew?
Normally with friends. There are khat houses, where people go to chew. The khat dealer will basically give you a place to chew so long as you chew his khat. You might get 15 to 20 people chewing and smoking in the same room, and all the windows are closed so you can have a good warm atmosphere. That’s when TB gets spread.

Of the increased number of Somalis hospitalized with mental health problems, what kind of symptoms are they reporting?
People have said to me that when they don’t chew and they go to bed, they see shadows, and shapes chasing them. This is when they are awake, not when they are asleep. It makes people paranoid. You're thinking about your problems too much. You start rowing with family because of your problems and the family breaks down. It’s hard to say whether or not these health problems are just because of khat, but it does make things worse.

If it’s so bad, why do you think the UK has not banned it yet?
The government aren’t that concerned about reclassifying it because it only affects a minority of the population.

Some people think the reason why Somalia is snared in a perpetual cycle of anarchy is because of the widespread use of khat.
I think so too. People ignore the problems it causes because it is so important to the Somali community. We’re talking about families being affected, jobs being affected, the country being affected.

Would you say it's a khat-astrophe?
Yes.

Yes! But don’t you think a ban on khat is an intrusion on Somali culture?
Definitely. But in this case it’s for the best.

DOMINIC TUNON