Wanda James, one of the first Black women in America to own a licensed cannabis dispensary, joins Safe Harbor CEO Terry Mendez for a candid conversation about 16 years in the cannabis industry — and why she's done waiting for half-measures.
From paying employees in cash in 2009 to running for Congress in 2026, Wanda shares why she believes full federal legalization is the only path forward, how 280E is strangling small cannabis businesses, and what she'd do in Washington that the current incumbent hasn't done in 30 years.
She also opens up about her brother's incarceration, the racial disparities that drove her into the industry, and why healthcare, banking access, and democratic accountability are all connected.
