Hemp Ladies on the Grow
A Documentary by Lorraine M. Blackwell
Coming Soon
HEMP LADIES ON THE GROW is a 30-minute documentary in development about Brenda, Deborah, and Zelda—African-American women in their 60s—growing hemp and hope against the odds in Halifax County, Virginia. Their journey is one of legacy, reclamation, and resilience. Your tax-deductible donation helps us complete and share their trailblazing story. Women in Film & Video is the fiscal sponsor for this project. Donations can be made on the WIFV website by clicking below. Thank you for your support.
Meet the Farmers
Brenda
Brenda has been a medical doctor for more than 35 years. Her family farmed tobacco for 50+ years, until the crop was phased out by the government. With retirement looming, Brenda saw an opportunity to revive the family farm when the 2018 Farm Bill was passed and allowed hemp cultivation.
Deborah
Debbie’s family has farmed since 1906. They owned 33 acres at a time when many African Americans were still trying to get their 40 acres and a mule. When Debbie retired from the federal government in 2019, although she knew nothing about farming, she decided it was time to revisit her roots and learn.
Zelda
Zelda is a retired federal government cartographer whose family farmed tobacco for nearly 30 years. Like Debbie, she decided to use part of her pension to fund her farm operation, and built a state-of-the-art high tunnel to grow hemp year-round. Zelda produced some of the healthiest plants around.
Their Story
In rural Virginia, three African-American women—Brenda, Deborah, and Zelda—are sowing new beginnings in their golden years. Once “city girls,” they’ve returned to their Southern roots to grow hemp.
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Stepping into a white, male-dominated industry riddled with legal red tape, financial risk, environmental challenges, and cultural misconceptions, they’re not just planting crops—they’re planting change. Despite the odds stacked against them due to their race, gender, and age, they’ve kicked down the door to an industry that rarely welcomes people who look like them.
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Industrial hemp has a complicated history. Once a booming cash crop in Virginia—used during World War II for parachutes, rope, textiles, and more—hemp was banned in 1970 due to its association with marijuana. Only in 2018 did the Farm Bill legalize hemp cultivation again. But while doors reopened for some, Black farmers—and especially Black women—found many remained closed.
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Hemp is no easy crop: it’s labor-intensive, costly, and unforgiving. But with no formal training, Brenda, Deborah, and Zelda taught themselves through research, trial and error, and sheer determination. Through setbacks, surprises, and long days in the field, they’ve cultivated more than plants—they’ve cultivated purpose.
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