Award winner hopes to inspire others

WASHINGTON — Jackie Arreola, owner principal of Jacqueline Arreola LLC, was among the 10 honorees selected by the Corridor Business Journal for the publication’s 2022 Women of Influence awards. The ceremony was held in Cedar Rapids in November.

The award, then on its 18th cycle, is meant to “recognize 10 women who have made a difference in the Corridor as role models and leaders in their fields and community,” according to a CBJ statement.

Arreola, a community advocate and business owner, said she hoped the honor inspired others like her.

“We don’t give ourselves enough credit, especially females and especially Latinas,” she said. “We are raised to be more, like, humble. There’s nothing wrong with being humble, but … there’s a term in Spanish (which) means, ‘If you’re quiet, you look more beautiful,’ which goes totally against my nature.”

By getting her success into the spotlight, Arreola said she aimed to fight against the expectation of silence.

“We need to be visible, we need to put ourselves out there,” she said. “We need to invite others, keep the door open so others can come.”

That said, cultural issues don’t come exclusively from within the Latino community. They also come from others’ perceptions.

While many Latino people are successful, Arreola said their work often went unrecognized.

“We have so many business owners here in Washington that are not Anglo, and they’re doing amazing things,” she said. “But then, we don’t celebrate them, we don’t hear the stories … it is great to be recognized, to hear the positive news, because we don’t hear that news very often.”

Beyond mere omission of their success, Arreola said Latin Americans were often subject to negative stereotypes, often related to crime and illegal immigration.

“Unfortunately, what we have seen on TV and media has not been … positive news,” she said. “I can see so many things, just because of the way that we’re looked at … we still need to educate, we need to put that positive message out that, ‘Hey, I’m here, and I’m just like you.’”

Awards like the one from CBJ have the potential to change the narrative, according to Arreola.

“We don’t see many people that look like me at the ballrooms, (as) board members, at the high executive level, at the political level,” she said. “We need that representation, so if we don’t open that door ourselves, nobody’s going to open it … I’m blowing my horn, because I want the next female Latina to say, ‘Hey, I can do it.’”

Arreola said she was proud to have that recognition.

“It feels good to be celebrated, not tolerated,” she said. “All the progress and the commitments and the work ethic that we bring have not been recognized, not just here in Washington, but across the nation. So yes, it feels good.”

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