Reyna Noriega is a proud Miamian on a mission to reflect the joy and authentic journeys of marginalized populations through visual art and writing. Noriega grew up loving art but was always struck by the fact that women artists, and especially women of color, were noticeably absent. So, she decided to do something about it. “I'm inspired by people who break the rules,” she says. And it’s that spirit that led to creating the artwork for PayPal’s inaugural Maggie Lena Walker Award. The award recognizes the achievements of underrepresented women who are transforming their communities and the world through economic empowerment. And its namesake was a history-making rulebreaker herself.
Maggie Lena Walker was the first Black woman to charter and serve as the president of a U.S. bank, St. Luke Penny Savings Bank. Among her many accomplishments, she also established the department store St. Luke’s Emporium, a launchpad for Black-owned businesses and a precursor to today’s “Buy Black” movement. Today, her great-great granddaughter, Liza Mickens, co-founder of Vote Equality, is committed to sharing Walker’s legacy while also continuing in her footsteps of uplifting Black women. “We have to ensure that we are getting our flowers while we are here,” she says. “Celebrating others warms our hearts, but it’s also what allows us to continue to do the work.”
To celebrate Black History Month, Mickens and Noriega spoke with Mic about redefining “Black excellence,” setting a solid foundation for entrepreneurship, and the intergenerational impact of Maggie Lena Walker.
On creative expression and fighting defeat:
Noriega: Creating art is like a funny dance where you're giving a lot of yourself, but it also fills you up. For me, whatever I'm pouring out, it's something that I need at the moment. Do I need more joy? Do I need more peace? Do I need more unity? Whatever it is that I'm feeling, it'll come out in that image. Everything we create is a commentary of the times. Although I'm creating images to make us feel good, it's because of these real world, very ugly things that are happening. It's not to ignore them. It’s so I can fight the long fight. My creative practice has revolved around finding ways to combat all of the oppression that I face as a woman, as a Black woman, and as an Afro-Latina. Being able to live my dream as a full-time artist, it feels like my responsibility then to teach and share about my journey and make sure that I'm being a blueprint and resource for others from our community that hope and aspire to live life based on their passions, their hopes, and their dreams.
Everything we create is a commentary of the times.
On advice for women pursuing entrepreneurship:
Noriega: My path of getting where I am meant that I really had to look inward, and I really had to get right with myself. You're pulled by so many things and told you should do this, and you should do that. The only way to know what you were really meant to be doing is to clear out that noise and listen to your intuition. Get comfortable with yourself, and apply the same discipline you’d have with a 9-to-5 to your own business.
Mickens: Set your intentions. Know what you're doing it for, and really allow that to get you out of bed in the morning. One thing [Walker] really would've emphasized is realizing your own power and the power of the individual. Figure out what your passions are and how you want to impact your community.
On “Black excellence” being much more than Black capitalism:
Mickens: Maggie came from a generation that we call the first generation of freedom — the first generation born outside of enslavement, the first generation who learned how to read. That is my idea of Black excellence. It's this group of people who really didn't have a blueprint but made incredible strides regardless. As Black people in this country, it's often said that you have to work twice as hard, and Maggie’s generation really embodied that.
Noriega: My work with grassroots organizations has challenged me to not look at Black excellence from the standpoint of Black capitalism. Part of what I want to do [is] peel back what we view as success — giving ourselves the chance to just be content with what we have as we do the work to strive for more. We have to do the work to reprogram our minds and just feel confident before we can tear down those walls.
On advocating for the representation of marginalized people:
Noriega: I want to create space for joyful, vibrant representations of women of color. There's not a lot of depictions of women that are not grounded by trauma or war. And it just kind of always felt dehumanizing to me. I wanted to see more images that made me feel good, made me feel empowered, that gave me energy. I also think I'm inspired by people who break the rules. There’s a current artist I have a lot of respect for that’s known for taking very classical images and putting our imagery in it, I think that's super powerful.
Mickens: I originally got started with Virginia's ratification process of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) to tell a more inclusive story. The suffrage movement is like a lot of American history — very whitewashed — so much so that figures like Maggie Walker were overlooked or even forgotten. Not only was she the first woman of color to run for statewide office in Virginia, she was also the first woman to run for statewide office. Maggie even registered hundreds of Black women when women did get the right to vote. Maggie’s political action really inspired me to make sure that we are celebrating people like her and putting more women of color in office to represent all of us.
Set your intentions. Know what you're doing it for, and really allow that to get you out of bed in the morning.
On building something that lasts:
Noriega: Define success for yourself. Do the inner work, figure out who you want to be, how you want to show up and stay true to that. You'll build a community. Today, we’re so focused on going viral. But slow and steady is fine because it gives you time to learn and to prepare and to grow and to make something that is sustainable and not overnight or here and then it's gone.
Mickens: Growing up and sharing Maggie Walker's story for years, it was so easy for me to say “I'm not doing enough, there's no way I will be able to leave my mark on the world in the same way.” Maggie Walker is such a prolific woman and touched history in a way I can't even begin to imagine. But when you step out of comparing yourself to others, you realize that you're doing enough for yourself in this moment. That really does allow you to continue and move forward.
This article is part of a series shining a light on the recipients of the first-ever PayPal Maggie Lena Walker Award, which aim to recognize the achievements of underrepresented women who are economically empowering their communities and creating a more inclusive world. To get the full story, read the BDG Studios profiles on Maggie Lena Walker Achievement Award winner Kathryn Finney as well as the 3 winners of the Maggie Lena Walker Emerging Leader Award.
