Diane Guerrero brings dialogue of deportation to UF students

About 500 students waited on the third floor of the Reitz Union to see Diane Guerrero from “Orange is the New Black” and “Jane the Virgin.”

The UF Hispanic Heritage Month hosted Guerrero at the Rion Ballroom on Monday night to speak about “In the Country We Love: My Family Divided,” a book she wrote about how she came home from school one day when she was 14 to find out her parents had been deported.

In front of the crowd, she shared her struggles of growing up knowing her family was undocumented and how she was forced to learn to live without her family.

“Nothing can really prepare you for a moment like that,” she said.

Mike Foley, a UF journalism professor, asked the actress about her battle with alcoholism, self-harm and suicidal thoughts after her parents left.

“I was so depressed, and I didn’t know how to release those feelings,” she said. “Maybe this giant glass of vodka is going to help.”

The crowd was silent as Guerrero spoke about her mental health struggles stemming from her separation from her family at such a young age.

When she first wrote about her early life, Guerrero didn’t expect anyone to read or care about it. She said people are surprised by her story — a situation that happens to others across the country each day.

She said her family realized how important it was for her to share intimate details about her life after she was invited to the White House by President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama.

Guerrero said she encourages young people — specifically young Hispanics — to register to vote and to vote in order to see changes in immigration policies.

She referred to Donald Trump as “The D” and said the only thing resulting from his nomination was people uniting for the cause of immigration.

“I won’t stop till I see some change,” Guerrero said. “If nothing else, to fix the system — to come to some sort of solution.”

Guerrero said her story started a dialogue about deportation, a subject most people shy away from talking about.

“I don’t want to be ashamed of myself anymore,” she said. “I lived a long time with that.”

Gabriella Larios, 21, came two hours early with her friends to be the first in line.

Larios said she has close friends who are undocumented, so seeing Guerrero speak up about the issue was meaningful.

“I think it’s something that people don’t like to talk about it because it’s so taboo,” the UF women’s studies senior said. “She puts a human face to it.”