Araceli's Impact: Navigating DEI Beyond Trends

DEI Isn’t Trendy Anymore—But I’m Still Doing the Work

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs were supposed to change everything. For a moment, it felt like they might. We saw hashtags, workshops, panels, and DEI officers springing up in institutions that had long ignored people like me. But the momentum slowed. The trend faded. And now, in many spaces, DEI is whispered—or worse, mocked.

But for me, DEI was never a trend. It was a lightpost.

Not the destination—but a signal. A glimmer of what could be possible. A flicker of hope guiding us through systems not built for our survival. I followed that light for years—through board rooms, nonprofits, classrooms, and community spaces.

And too often, I found it dimming.

As a longtime community advocate, social worker, and daughter of immigrants, I’ve spent years sitting through DEI trainings—waiting for someone to name the deeper wounds.

The shame of housing insecurity.

The silence around cultural erasure.

The weight of being a first-generation Latina in the Midwest, navigating spaces that didn’t see me.

That’s why I wrote this book.

“I wrote this book for women, for Latinas, for Black women, for Brown women, for Queer/Trans women, for First Gen folks, and Immigrant women who have faced discrimination in the workplace. I wrote this for mujeres who followed their hearts to work for a nonprofit organization that was white-led, and that ultimately did not have their best interests in mind. I wrote this book for women of color who have been tokenized and abused in the business sector. More importantly, though, I wrote this so that we become a worthy opponent of racism and the structures that sustain workplace discrimination, the systems that want to silence our voices.”

Mi libro!

This book isn’t just about justice—it’s about healing. It’s about reclaiming the power of our stories. It's about reminding ourselves that we are not broken—we are breaking through.

Because DEI is a start, but it’s not the destination.

It’s time we talk about liberation, not just inclusion.

Healing, not just representation.

Joy, not just survival.

This book is a firestarter—to ignite conversations, courage, and community. And I want you to join me.

Have you ever felt unseen by these conversations? Flattened by frameworks that don’t reflect your lived experience? Then you are who I wrote this for.

Let’s rewrite the narrative together.

👉 Sign up [here] to get a free digital copy of my new book: Healing from Racial Discrimination: ¿Ahora Qué? Now, What?

📚 After reading, I’d be honored if you could leave a review on Amazon. Your voice matters—and your review helps others find theirs.

Tu historia importa.

Let’s write it.

In happier moments, when I was writing my book, I became an international consultant for entrepreneurs! Here I am leading a class!