Photo-Illustration: by The Cut; Photo: Krystal Vigo
In February, Leeann Mata became the first Black woman to own a dispensary in her native Brooklyn with the opening of Matawana on 14th Street and Fifth Avenue in Park Slope (Mayor Eric Adams appeared at the ribbon cutting). It was the realization of a long-held dream for Mata, whose father and brothers had been charged with marijuana possession in the past. She also overcame several hurdles to open the business lovingly named for her late mother, who suffered from chronic pain and used cannabis to overcome an opioid addiction. Injunctions blocking the disbursement of licenses in some areas of New York kept Mata in limbo for more than 18 months after she completed the arduous paperwork. Not one to sit on her hands, she wrote and self-published Money & Marijuana, a comprehensive guide to growing and processing in New York City, to help other aspiring dispensary owners navigate the considerable red tape.
Mata previously worked as a pre-K teacher and public-health educator before first getting her CBD license. She then wanted to take her quest to educate consumers about the healing properties of cannabis to the next level. To
