Latina women struggle with workplace equality, imposter syndrome and feeling as if we don’t belong in certain institutions, and we’re also constantly told to shrink ourselves in order to not make others (read: white people) uncomfortable with our Latinidad. Another policing of our identities and how we navigate the workplace and the world is when others tell us what to wear or not wear. 

None of this is okay and Latina women deserve more respect and freedom to be our unapologetic selves.

NBC/MSNBC correspondent Mariana Atencio wrote in her new book that an unnamed female manager told her not to dress “too Latina” for the White House Correspondents Dinner in 2017.

According to Newsweek, the manager told Atencio that she should dress more like Ivanka Trump. In her new book, Perfectly You: Embracing the Power of Being Real, Atencio writes about how happy she was to represent the Latinx community and how proud she was to have a seat at the table, “literally and figuratively.” 

She also writes about the encounter she had with the unnamed female manager who gave her a call before the White House Correspondents Dinner and asked what she planned to wear to the dinner. 

“It was a weird phone call—with an even weirder request,” Atencio writes. ” ‘Why do you ask?’ I replied. ‘Please don’t look too Latina.’ At first, I thought I didn’t hear correctly. ‘I beg your pardon?’ I asked. ‘When you pick your outfit, I mean. Don’t look too Latina.'”

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“I felt offended. Outrage and indignation hit me at once… This person was making me feel smaller and smaller with each word. Can you imagine someone in your field asking you to please not look so African American? Or Asian? Or white? Don’t look so Muslim or Christian? How do you change who you are?,” Atencio wrote. 

However, according to Atencio—the manager didn’t stop there with her unsolicited fashion advice. She went on to advise Atencio to go to Saks Fifth Avenue “and have someone help you out.” The female manager told Atencio, “‘Have them pick out something demure. Not too colorful or tight. Think Ivanka Trump, OK?'”

First of all, how do you dress “too Latina”? If that’s the case, should we stoop to the same level and say, “Ivanka, can you dress a little less like the complicit daughter of a racist commander in chief”?

According to a statement given to USA Today, MSNBC called the manager’s comments “highly inappropriate and unacceptable. More than a year and a half later, when it was first brought to a manager’s attention, immediate action was taken. Since this is an HR matter and there are privacy concerns, we won’t go into greater detail.”

In an interview with NBC News, the award-winning Venezuelan correspondent spoke about the incident and shared more lessons of inclusivity and diversity as well as what she hopes the book will achieve. The Latina immigrant journalist and author began her career in Venezuela and talked about what it was like being one of the first Latina journalists on air when she first began her career. 

“When I first started, it was more of, ‘How can we tone this down?’ But with time it was realizing that in fact, I had to be more myself,” Atencio said. 

She goes on to say that she wanted to include the anecdote in her memoir not to focus on the negative but to remind readers that “these things still happen. We have to call them out and have conversations as adults about how to get past them.”

People on social media shared their own experiences about going through something similar to what Atencio went through. 

Daisy Fuentes tweeted that she could relate and that it’s “time to end the racist stereotypes.” 

Another journalist said he’s heard this countless times from Latina coworkers in the media industry.

We’re glad men in the industry are also bringing to light this discriminatory and dangerous stereotype against Latina women and the Latinx community in general. 

Latinx film critic Yolanda Machado also shared that she’s been told to not “go all Latina” in reference to getting upset over something in the workplace.

“Most of these are followed by ‘I don’t see color, but…’ or ‘I don’t mean you, of course, but…'” she tweeted. “Racist. Racist. RACIST.” 

We applaud Mariana Atencio for including this in her memoir in order to work toward a future where Latina women in the workplace don’t have to undergo this type of behavior from others. 

“The message of my book is that you, too (readers) can make it. By sharing my journey, I hope to inspire (others) on their journey,” Atencio said of her memoir. 

Despite having a pretty reputable background in civic service, both in politics and customer service, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been the subject of scrutiny for not being experienced enough to be a Congresswoman. She graduated from Boston University, worked under Sen. Ted Kennedy and campaigned heavily for Sen. Bernie Sanders. Yes, she also was a bartender and waitress, which means she understands the value of a dollar and how to hold down a job.

Her resume came up — again — over the weekend because Rep. Ocasio-Cortez criticized one very visible person in the Trump Administration.

While distinguished world leaders gathered in Japan for the 2019 G-20 Summit over the weekend, this clip of Ivanka Trump went viral because she inserted herself into a conversation and it was pretty hilarious.

The President’s daughter, who follows her dad on various trips and has her own White House title of advisor, cut into a conversation between the President of France and the Prime Minister of the U.K.

The clip went viral over the ridiculousness of it all. While Ivanka Trump holds the position as Advisor to the President of The United States many expressed views that she is unqualified for her role.

Like many others on social media, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez said Ivanka’s presence at the G-20 Summit was not a good look for diplomacy.

“It may be shocking to some, but being someone’s daughter actually isn’t a career qualification,” she said on Twitter. “It hurts our diplomatic standing when the President phones it in & the world moves on. The U.S. needs our President working the G20. Bringing a qualified diplomat couldn’t hurt either.

After her comment, Trump supporters railed against Rep. Ocasio-Cortez and said her background didn’t qualify her to be a congresswoman.

Some critics actually accused her of faking a visit to the children at the border, where she found herself crying. But that visit did take place prior to her victorious election.

Rep. Ocasio-Cortez fired back at the haters saying blue-collar workers understand the government more than privileged children of politicians.

She said she is proud of her background as a worker in restaurants.

“Working people that GOP dismisses as ‘just a waitress/cook/etc’ contains multitudes, & are just as capable & intelligent as anyone. Classism – judging someone’s character by their income – is disappointing to see from them. What is so appalling to GOP about having an honest job? Some of the most nuanced, intelligent, & grounded people I‘ve ever met weren’t at BU, MIT or Harvard events when I was a student. They were the plumbers & waitresses I hung out with at happy hour, who had ferocious intellectual curiosity *and* a lived context of the real world. In other words, Republicans who criticize my being a waitress as evidence of lacking skill can take their classism to the trash. You are insulting the capacities and potential of virtually every working person in America (&the world) for having the experience that’s earned, not bought.”

Say it, sister!