Jay Z Calls the War on Drugs an ‘Epic Fail’ in Scathing New York Times Video Op-ed

The war on drugs has been fought on American soil and beyond for nearly half a century with no end in sight, and has long been viewed by most as a massive blunder. One of its biggest opponents: Jay Z, whose drug-dealing past has become the stuff of legend. He’s now declared his own war on the war on drugs, narrating an animated video op-ed for the New York Times in which he calls Richard Nixon’s plan an “epic fail.� (Hov also wrote the video’s script.) He traces the war’s history from his “coming of age� in 1986 all the way up to its present failings, dropping data throughout to support his argument that it’s a war systemically enforced to incarcerate young black men and make rich white people richer. “Young men like me who hustled became the sole villains,� he says. He also places blame on the justice system and media for perpetuating that myth. It’s a scathing indictment of the whole cycle that ends with Hov demanding that America “rethink our policies and laws.�