NY Times Calls to End Pot Prohibition But Still Drug Tests Writers

The NY Times called for an end to marijuana prohibition on Sunday, but they still test new employees for marijuana? That’s what the LA Weekly among others is reporting; “It turns out the paper, which said in its editorial that cannabis is “far less dangerous than alcohol,” still tests new employees for marijuana use.”

And get this after the story broke, a Times spokeswoman told the HuffPost that the paper’s policy for drug testing hasn’t changed. “Our corporate policy on this issue reflects current law,” the spokeswoman said. “We aren’t going to get into details beyond that.”

Isn’t it ironic that the NY TImes expressly admits that “moderate use of marijuana does not appear to pose a risk for otherwise healthy adults,” but they officially screen applicants to keep out writers who smoke weed? And they’re not going to stop? Luckily, LA’s WeedMaps noticed the hypocrisy, called foul and initiated a Change.org petition asking The New York Times Co. and their publisher Arthur Sulzberger, Jr. to “stop drug testing employees for marijuana.”

Aaron Huston, a strategist at Weedmaps said “The Times’ current drug testing policy conundrum highlights the
challenge facing our society as states legalize marijuana. People may no longer go to jail for marijuana under the new laws, but they still face an array of other life-changing consequences for using marijuana that they wouldn’t face for using alcohol or prescription drugs, including loss of a job, voting rights, housing, and access to education, to name a few. The Times should change its drug testing policy to reflect its position ending marijuana prohibition,”

The petition says that “off-duty marijuana use doesn’t negatively impact a journalist’s ability to do his or her job.” And it points out that piss tests don’t actually determine whether or not someone is currently stoned; they just prove whether or not they were stoned as far back as a month ago.

Tom Angell, founder of the group Marijuana Majority, praised WeedMaps for its stance and said, “If the New York Times believes it is wrong to discriminate against people for using marijuana, then they should stop doing so. Full stop. Forward-thinking companies in the emerging legal marijuana industry, such as WeedMaps, are leading the way toward a post-prohibition approach to hiring and human resources by focusing on job performance and not on the content of their employees’ urine. The Times Company and other businesses in traditional sectors would do well to follow suit.”

Well NY Times, you told the US government it’s time to “repeal their version of Prohibition,” now it’s time for you to repeal your own!

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