My family is broken.
— Diane Guerrero
My job as an actor is to be visible and to tell stories.
I don't think you're ever ready to read your life back to yourself and try to make it entertaining for others.
I went through depression, which is something that we don't often talk about when we look at undocumented communities and deported families.
I worked a variety of jobs in retail and at coffee shops all through high school. And, though I was surrounded by people who cared about me, part of me ached with every accomplishment, because my parents weren't there to share my joy.
Neighbors broke the news that my parents had been taken away by immigration officers, and just like that, my stable family life was over.
People like seeing people being human and real, and I think that's been lacking on TV.
We need someone who's going to govern on behalf of everyone in this country, including immigrants.
I feel like there's this misconception that immigrants come here and just don't care about the system and paying taxes, and that's not true.
I was lucky enough to be with my parents until I was 14. Having my parents tell me that I could do anything. I was special. I matter.
It's sometimes a little embarrassing to take selfies, but sometimes I want to take a selfie because I'm like, 'Oh I look cute. I like my hat. I like what I'm wearing, and I want to show it off.'
I always thought, 'Wow, I know I have an important story to tell,' but I never really thought it would happen.
Whatever the reason is, I am happiest when connecting with the human experience. It lets me know that I'm not alone in this world.
'Doom Patrol' is doing the most - and the wackiest - things, but when you've been alive in this time, you know it's actually not so wacky. Awful, strange, and inexplicable things do happen.
My parents have always been very honest with me.
While awaiting deportation proceedings, my parents remained in detention near Boston, so I could visit them. They would have liked to fight deportation, but without a lawyer and an immigration system that rarely gives judges the discretion to allow families to stay together, they never had a chance.
If we value children and family, there's a great need for change, and we should try immigration reform - create a path for citizenship for people already here, update the visa system.
As much as it's been difficult to tell my story over and over again, it has been the best thing that has ever happened to me.
I want to present the immigrant community in more of a real light.
I so desperately wanted to be honest, and I so desperately wanted to love myself and accept myself for who I was.
I am here, a citizen of this country, and I'm saying, 'Hey, the system failed me. I am a good citizen. I contribute to this country, and here I am sharing my story. What are you going to do now?'
My parents came here from Colombia during a time of great instability there. Escaping a dire economic situation at home, they moved to New Jersey, where they had friends and family, seeking a better life, and then moved to Boston after I was born.
For me, picking a college was really difficult. I wish I had had my parents there kind of supervising me. But I chose well. I did OK.
I think despite what we've seen on TV, people like seeing women and knowing about women's stories and their struggles and their truth. I think we've seen it in a lot of these shows - when there's a cast of all women, it does very well.
My father, who worked as a dishwasher, was especially anxious. He did not like being here undocumented.
Once my family was taken, I became fully aware that my community matters less to some people. That we are treated differently because of the color of our skin or where our parents were born.
When I go to places, I love going to all those kind of amusement parks and kind of cheesy things to do.
My parents were desperately trying to become documented citizens of this country and tried very hard to get there, but to no avail.
I grew up in Boston.
I think one of my best qualities is my ability to empathize with people. Perhaps it's because my journey has been so bumpy.
It's interesting when people access their inner little girl or little boy. I remember doing tons of those exercises when I was in school, where you're trying to dig into your vulnerability. There's no mask for a child, so all those feelings are real.
I learned at a very young age that my parents were undocumented.
Immigrants are working hard to give our families a better life. Isn't that what the American Dream is?
I'm not one for lying to children.
I am representing my community, in a sense, especially given the fact that there are not as many Latino actors out there.
Even kids who haven't had firsthand experience with the immigration system, I want them to know how families are affected and what kind of system is in place.
I want immigration reform to come into fruition, and I want it to be comprehensive, and I want it to have a path to citizenship, and I want to be involved politically every day.
Every day, children who are U.S. citizens are separated from their families as a result of immigration policies that need fixing.
My real story is this: I am the citizen daughter of immigrant parents who were deported when I was 14. My older brother was also deported.
Throughout my childhood, I watched my parents try to become legal but to no avail. They lost their money to people they believed to be attorneys but who ultimately never helped. That meant my childhood was haunted by the fear that they would be deported.
I definitely binge-watched 'House of Cards' when it first came out.
My father was desperately trying to be a legal contributor to this society.
I don't know why I was lucky enough to have people in my community take me in. To be able to continue school. Or why I was lucky enough to find work or go to college. I do know that kind of luck is one in a million.
'Forrest Gump' has been one of my favorite movies of all time.
We were like any other family with the same troubles and some of the same happy moments.
I definitely had to pave my own path, which wasn't always the easiest thing to do.
I love entertaining people! It's who I am.
I worked while in high school and college so that I could pay for school. I also had loans.
When you're the child of undocumented immigrants, you learn to keep your mouth shut.
It has never been illegal to be a refugee.
