“A woman’s work is in the home.”
“A woman belongs in the kitchen.”
“A woman should be seen and not heard.”
Blah blah blah.
Long enough ladies have heard this inane drivel spilled from the mouths of idiots, male and female alike, and long enough excuses have been made for the idiots because, hey, they are just looking out for us delicate, fragile women…right?
But as the legal cannabis industry expands into further and further territory the question becomes less “Do women belong in the cannabis industry” and more “WHERE do women belong in the cannabis industry.”
I’m going to pull out the feminism card. Strap yourself in. Any job that a man can do, a woman can do. Period. Unless the job heavily involves the use of one’s penis, I suppose.
Any board meeting a man can lead, a woman can lead.
Any deal a man can make, a woman can make.
Any code a man can crack, a woman can crack just as well.
And she might just even be wearing painful high heels during all of it…
Now, don’t go jumping down my throat, I am not of the mindset that women are better than men or that women are superior in any way to anyone or anything. Sure, we are great – we can grow babies and then feed them from our own bodies, so we are seen as natural caretakers, the softer sex, the weaker sex…see how it can go from complimentary to condescending really quickly? I challenge you to think of words to describe a woman without using the word “delicate,” “beautiful,” “soft,” “sexy,” you get the idea…why can’t we, more often than not, get the words like “powerful,” “strong,” “competent,” “smart.”
So, where do these delicate, beautiful, soft, sexy, powerful, strong, competent and smart women fit in when it comes to the cannabis industry? Well, there are a few answers to that question at least.
One place women work in the cannabis industry is in modeling. What cannabis company doesn’t need a large female breast with a baby sucking on it front and center. REMEMBER, we are women and we make babies, don’t forget your place ladies. What cannabis company doesn’t need to exploit the curves of a woman’s body in order to push product? Anyone remember that cartoon ad a few years ago, with a topless girl scout aiming to sell the Girl Scout Cookies strain…like you need tits to do that.
Another place women can find work in the cannabis industry is on the grow floor. To be fair, I’ve seen very few women growers in my personal experience and when I do see ladies that work in cannabis grows around Denver they are typically trimmers as opposed to running the show.
And sadly, some of the women being recruited to grow in a certain part of California known as The Emerald Triangle are being sexually abused by the very people that are hiring them. Cosmopolitan magazine reports, “‘Women believe they are getting hired for trimming work, and then they’re drugged and raped,’ said Maryann Hayes Mariani, a coordinator for the North Coast Rape Crisis Team. ‘Everybody looks at (the region) like it’s the Land of Oz. I’m just so tired of pretending like it’s not happening here.’”
So even though women are able to find gainful employment in grows across the United States of Cannabis, some of that employment comes with a very steep caveat.
Finally, women can find themselves at the head of the table, if they so desire. Women are quickly leveling the playing field in this space and are already taking more C level positions than in other industries. Female owned cannabis companies are changing the game when it comes to advertising, anti-sexual harassment policies, abuse protections and more. But these ladies aren’t large and in charge because they sat around waiting for a handout.
The cannabis industry IS a place for women. We have the opportunity to bring our voices to this conversation and be powerful, strong, competent and smart while doing so. But, no one is going to do it for you girl, so if you are interested in joining/excelling/running the cannabis industry it is time to put your head down and get to work!