Leaders of two marijuana women’s groups are protesting MassRoots’ installment of Scott Kveton as CEO because of past sexual assault allegations, which the executive calls “false accusations.”
Kveton’s hiring has also led to a new social media campaign aimed at raising awareness of sexual assault within the marijuana industry at large.
Kyra Reed, founder of Women Entrepreneurs in Cannabis, and Bonita Money, founder of Women Abuv Ground, have launched a new hashtag – #notinmyindustry – with the aim of making it clear that sexual assault will not be tolerated in the marijuana sector.
The move comes amid growing allegations of sexual assault and harassment against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.
Reed made this post to the Women Entrepreneurs’ Facebook page:
“CALL TO ACTION: PROTEST MASS ROOTS FOR HIRING A CEO ACCUSED OF SEXUAL ASSAULT. This issue impacts all women in the workforce, especially those in cannabis.”
“We do not want this to become a mark on our industry, the way it has with other industries. Because what it does is it sends women a signal, that we don’t care about you,” Reed told Marijuana Business Daily. “This is what we want to put a stop to ASAP. You cannot get away with this in this industry. We are not going to stay silent.”
However, Reed and her supporters stopped short of calling for a boycott of Denver-based MassRoots, and Reed said she’s not seeking Kveton’s dismissal.
“I don’t know what the end result specifically at MassRoots is, but I hope the board of directors realizes this is not acceptable. These things do matter. They matter to your women employees,” said Reed, also the founder of social media strategy service Markyr Digital and CEO of online business school Kadin Academy.
Kveton said unequivocally he has been cleared of all wrongdoing regarding sexual assault allegations by a former girlfriend in a case that dates to 2010.
He noted he was not charged criminally. A grand jury declined to indict Kveton after the allegation, according to The Oregonian. The newspaper also reported that the couple struck a civil agreement to settle the complaint.
“I spent three years defending myself and was repeatedly vindicated,” Kveton told Marijuana Business Daily. “I’m coming into MassRoots and I’m trying to do the best that I can … and these false accusations keep dogging me.”
The MassRoots board was fully aware of the allegations, Kveton said, adding that he “was straight with the MassRoots team. … I walked them through all of these things, and that they were false allegations and that I was vindicated.”