Kosmicare & Research Centre for Human Development, Catholic University of Portugal

 Nightclubs, modern drugs and transgressive gender performativity: a socio-historical analysis of the emergence of drug prohibitions in Portugal?

During the period between the post-First World War and the establishment of the Estado Novo dictatorship in Portugal in 1926, drug use (beyond alcohol), bohemian nightlife, and more fluid and transgressive gender performativity shaped the urban lifestyle of privileged young adults. The conservative voices associated the use of cocaine and morphine with moral and sexual degradation, particularly among women. This backlash ultimately led to the closing of nightclubs and the criminalization of “modern drugs” for non-medical purposes on 9 December 1924, aligning the national drug policies with the international drug control treaty signed in the International Opium Convention in 1912. Paradoxically, most drug-related problems described in Portugal were cases of iatrogenic addiction.

This presentation draws on media, literature, and scientific sources focused on Les Années Folles to build a critical and comprehensive perspective regarding the dynamic interplay between nightlife, drug use, societal changes, and their historical (dis)continuities. In the twenties of 2000s, what can we learn from the twenties of 1900s?