'Orange is the New Black' & 'Jane The Virgin' Star Diane Guerrero's New Memoir to Further Detail Family's Emotional Immigration Plight
With the holidays upon us, families gather for Christmas, Chanukah and New Year's to celebrate and ring in a New Year of new possibilities, resolutions and hope for change.
But the sad fact is that many families have been separated and deported due to a broken immigration system, thus making the holidays bittersweet for many, including "Orange Is the New Black" and "Jane The Virgin" star Diane Guerrero.
In November, Guerrero, who was born in the U.S. and is of Colombian descent, shared her family's plight as undocumented immigrants and made "an emotional plea for immigration reform" through an op-ed in The Los Angeles Times. Now, the actress wants to share her family's story in more depth so others can find strength and, hopefully in the process, spearhead change in comprehensive immigration reform.
According to Publisher's Weekly, Guerrero recently landed a book deal with Henry Holt and will write a memoir based on her and her family's immigrant experience titled "In the Country We Love."
The memoir, which is reportedly scheduled to be released in early 2016, will be co-written by Michelle Burford, who also co-wrote the memoir by Michelle Knight, one of the women abducted by Ariel Castro in Cleveland.
According to Holt, the book will be a "personal, heartbreaking story of her family's nightmarish struggles as undocumented residents seeking citizenship -- but ultimately deported -- in the United States." The book will also "cast a much-needed light on the fears that haunt the daily existence of families likes hers and on a system that failed them over and over."
Guererro detailed the aftermath of the deportation of her father, mother and brother back to Colombia in her LA Times op-ed:
"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. If I didn't see anyone when I walked in the door after school, I panicked," Guerrero wrote.
"And then one day, my fears were realized. I came home from school to an empty house. Lights were on and dinner had been started, but my family wasn't there. Neighbors broke the news that my parents had been taken away by immigration officers, and just like that, my stable family life was over.
"Not a single person at any level of government took any note of me," she said. "No one checked to see if I had a place to live or food to eat, and at 14, I found myself basically on my own."
While the Boston-born actress was helped by friends and family to finish school and to pursue her dreams, she now has a huge support from her fans online as well, who often share their support via social media.
One Instagram user, anaisabel605 wrote, "@dianeguerrero_ thank you for having a voice for undocumented immigrants. I was that child and my mom too. Thank you! I hope one day I can bring about as much awareness as you did. It's hard and that part of the story never gets told. Thank you!"
Guerrero also shared her story with Michaela Pereira on CNN's "New Day."
"The op-ed and CNN interview went viral just days before President Barack Obama announced his executive action to shield an estimated 4.4 million undocumented immigrants from deportation, including those with children born in the U.S. like Guerrero's family. Because the actress' parents were deported already, however, they will not benefit from the new policy," The Huffington Post pointed out.
Listed as one of Remezcla.com's "12 Latino Actors That Absolutely Killed it in 2014," Guerrero has made her mark in 2014 through her acting roles and by speaking out on behalf of her family and comprehensive immigration reform. It will be great to see what 2015 has in store for this talented Latina.
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