Getting loud for a good cause.
Jennifer Lopez helped Grameen America's "Raising Latina Voices" event, held on Sept. 17 on the Backlot at Universal Studios in Los Angeles.
An eyewitness tells E! News that Ben Affleck was also in attendance to support his wife, who spoke to over 400 Latina entrepreneurs and promoted her latest philanthropic project Limitless Labs' partnership with Grameen America, which aims to empower Latina-owned small businesses.
"What I saw growing up was that it was very, very difficult for people like me, low-income Latinos, especially women, to get access to capital," Jennifer shared with the crowd. "In fact, we remain sixty percent less likely to get loans from national banks, and that is fundamentally unfair and fundamentally un-American, and it made the promise of the American dream feel partly hollow. That's why I'm here today, alongside Grameen, to change that."
The Marry Me star, who rocked a chic off-white suit by Fendi at the event, vowed to "make that promise real for everyone" by making sure "people who look like me or come from places like where I come from have the same opportunity to borrow money to start their own business and make their dreams come true."
JLo continued, "Don't give up, ever. Listen but be strong. "Be kind but be resolute. Be generous but be firm. Be caring but be professional. Be open but have boundaries. Above all, be honest. We don't need a handout, we need a hand up,"
Jennifer—who shares 14-year-old twins Max and Emme with ex Marc Anthony—also shared the "best advice" she can give her kids, which is "you can be whoever you believe you can be."
She said, "Find that in yourself and don't give up. Learn from people who have done it well, then take those ideas and innovate and refine them and make them your own. And listen to your parents, we aren't quite as clueless as we seem when you're 14."
Jennifer impassioned appearance comes one month after she and Ben exchanged vows at a lavish wedding at the actor's estate in Georgia. The couple originally married in a private ceremony in Las Vegas in July.