“I believed in the plant, even when everyone told me I was throwing my life away,” says Dr. Chanda Macias.
Her words land with the weight of a life defined by grit, loss and triumph. Macias stands out in the cannabis space as a scientist, advocate and pioneer. As the CEO of National Holistic Healing Center in Washington, D.C., she became the first Black woman to open and operate a medical cannabis dispensary on the East Coast. Today, her name is synonymous with resilience and breaking barriers. But that journey didn’t start in the spotlight. It began in the trenches of adversity.
Growing up in a working-class family, Macias faced struggles that could have derailed her ambitions. As a teenager, she became a single mother after her son’s father was incarcerated during the height of the war on drugs. “No one ever thought that I was going to go to college,” she says. Expectations were low, but her resolve wasn’t. Without telling anyone, she applied to Howard University and the University of Maryland. When both accepted her, Howard’s legacy of Black excellence made the choice clear. “Of course, I have a diverse background. I’m a Latina, but I have been in the Black community my entire life, so I do identify as African-Latina.”
Howard was transformative for Macias, but it wasn’t easy. She worked two jobs, cared for her child and pushed herself academically. “Yes, I was working two jobs and raising a kid, but I fell in love with science,” she says. It wasn’t just a passion; it became a lifeline.
Cancer had deeply affected her community and her circle of friends. Watching women around her battle breast cancer, she immersed herself in researching the BRCA1 gene, searching for answers and solutions.
H/T: www.forbes.com
