Virginia Gomez

Virginia Gomez is a senior at California State University, Northridge (CSUN) with a double major in Gender and Women’s Studies and Political Science. Using an intersectional feminist lens, she is currently conducting a phenomenological research study that explores the meanings that women make of their role within the cannabis industry in Los Angeles, California. Through in-depth qualitative interviews, Virginia is exploring women’s work experiences and the various challenges they face within the formal and informal industry. She is interested in how women navigate these challenges and how they find spaces of empowerment within a male-dominated emerging cannabis industry. Through an interdisciplinary approach, Virginia is attending to the gender and power dynamics concerning women’s involvement in the cannabis space and analyzing how women have been impacted by the legitimization of this developing industry. During her time at CSUN, she has served as a student assistant for the Gender and Women’s Studies Department working closely with faculty, staff, and students to advance the goals of the department.