MKUltra

**MKUltra** was an illegal human experimentation program. The program was made by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). The project would create drugs and methods that could be used in interrogations that could force confessions with brainwashing and psychological torture. The word "MKUltra" is a CIA cryptonym: "MK" was a random abbreviation that stood for Office of Technical Service. "Ultra" is a random word from the dictionary to name the project. The program has been very unpopular. It violated individual rights. It is an example of the CIA's abuse of power. Many critics say it did not allow for consent and hurt democratic ideas.

Project MKUltra started in 1953. The project was stopped in 1973. MKUltra used many ways to change people's brain functions. They tried to use high doses of psychoactive drugs (like LSD) and other chemicals. Consent was often not given. They also tried to use other methods. They used many types of torture, like electroshocks, hypnosis, sensory deprivation, isolation, verbal and sexual abuse.

MKUltra was organized through the CIA's Office of Scientific Intelligence. It was coordinated with the United States Army Biological Warfare Laboratories. The program did many illegal things. For example, they used U.S. and Canadian citizens as test subjects. MKUltra did many things that they said was research. They worked at over 80 institutions that were not the military. Many of these were colleges and universities, hospitals, prisons, and pharmaceutical companies. The CIA used many front organizations, though some officials at these organizations did know about the CIA's involvement.

Project MKUltra was revealed to the public in 1975 by the Church Committee. This committee was named after Senator Frank Church. It was also revealed to the public because of Gerald Ford's United States President's Commission on CIA Activities within the United States (the Rockefeller Commission). The investigation into the project was difficult. This was because past CIA Director, Richard Helms, ordered all MKUltra files be destroyed in 1973. The Church Committee and Rockefeller Commission investigations only used testimony (interviews) with participants. They also had some documents that survived Helms's order. In 1977, a Freedom of Information Act allowed for 20,000 documents about MKUltra to be revealed. This led to Senate hearings. More information about MKUltra was declassified in 2001.

## Related pages

- Unit 731 (Japan)

- Brainwashing

## Further reading

- _Poisoner in Chief: Sidney Gottlieb and the CIA Search for Mind Control_, Henry Holt and Co., by Stephen Kinzer, 2019,
- _The Secret History of Fort Detrick, the CIA's Base for Mind Control Experiments_, by Stephen Kinzer, Politico, 2019.
- _Acid: The Secret History of LSD_, by David Black, London: Vision, 1998, . Later edition exists.
- _Acid Dreams: The Complete Social History of LSD: The CIA, the Sixties, and Beyond_ by Martin Lee and Bruce Shlain, New York: Grove Press, 1985,
- _The Agency: The Rise and Decline of the CIA_, by John Ranelagh, pp. 208–10.
- _80 Greatest Conspiracies of All Time_, by Jonathan Vankin and John Whalin, chapter 1, "CIAcid Drop".
- _In the Sleep Room: The Story of CIA Brainwashing Experiments in Canada_, Anne Collins, Lester & Orpen Dennys (Toronto), 1988.
- _Journey into Madness: The True Story of Secret CIA Mind Control and Medical Abuse_, by Gordon Thomas, NY: Bantam, 1989,
- _Operation Mind Control: Our Secret Government's War Against Its Own People_, by W H Bowart, New York: Dell, 1978,
- _The Men Who Stare at Goats_, by Jon Ronson, Picador, 2004,
- _The Search for the Manchurian Candidate_, by John Marks, W.W. Norton & Company Ltd, 1999,
- _Storming Heaven: LSD and The American Dream_, by Jay Stevens, New York: Grove Press, 1987,

## Other websites

- Entire Four CD-ROM set of CIA / MKUltra Declassified documents released by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), image format, _The Black Vault_
- MKUltra Declassified documents (PDF)
- U.S. Supreme Court, _CIA v. Sims_, 471 U.S. 159 (1985) 471 U.S. 159, FindLaw
- U.S. Supreme Court, _United States v. Stanley_, 483 U.S. 669 (1987) 483 U.S. 669, FindLaw
- Mind Control and MKULTRA by Richard G. Gall
- Results of the 1973 Church Committee Hearings, on CIA misdeeds, and the 1984 Iran/Contra Hearings
- List of MKULTRA Unclassified Documents including subprojects