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‘Orange Is The New Black’ Star, Diane Guerrero Reveals Her Tragic History In New Book

By Danielle McGaw
Published on: 14:33 PST, May 12, 2016

Orange Is The New Black, the popular Netflix original series, is filled with talented actresses and actors who have a diverse past. One of the stars of Orange Is The New Black, Diane Guerrero, has just released a new book called, In The Country We Love: My Family Divided, and it reveals the details of how she was separated from her family at a young age and had to rely on the kindness of others to get through life.

She was only 14-years-old when she came home from school one day and learned that her parents had been deported. Here and Now speaks to the Orange Is The New Black star and shares an excerpt of her book.

“She returned from school to find that her parents, undocumented immigrants from Colombia, had been taken by immigration officials. They were detained and deported. Diane saw them infrequently over the next decade as she struggled to make a life for herself.”

Goodreads gives more clarification about the book and the story that the Orange Is The New Black actress, Diane Guerrero has to tell in the book description of “In The Country We Love: My Family Divided.”

“Born in the U.S., Guerrero was able to remain in the country and continue her education, depending on the kindness of family friends who took her in and helped her build a life and a successful acting career for herself, without the support system of her family.”

The description goes on to explain that in the United States there are over 11 million immigrants that are undocumented and many of them have children; many of those children are American citizens, too.

The book written by the Orange Is The New Black star was co-written with Michelle Burford. It was published earlier in May by Henry Hold and Co.

Guerrero spoke to CBS News and revealed a bit about why she wrote the book saying, “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?'”

In comment threads on social media and on articles, many have asked why she didn’t just go to Columbia to be with her parents. First, remember that the Orange Is The New Black star was born in America. It is the only place she knew. In her CBS article, she adds that, despite what had happened she still believed that there were more opportunities available to her than there would be in Columbia.

This is not the first time that Diane Guerrero has spoken to the media about her experience. In 2014, she spoke to CNN about it. She revealed that she understood from a young age that the possibility of deportation was always there and it was always something that they were aware of. She also talked about how her parents tried over and over again to get the proper papers to stay in the United States and to become American citizens.

In the video, Orange Is The New Black star, Diane Guerrero breaks into tears several times as she speaks about her parents, missing them, visiting them, and their current relationship.

Orange Is The New Black, Season 4, will be released on June 17 on Netflix. Fans are excited to see what their favorite characters will be up to. The season looks to be much more dramatic than previous seasons. Diane Guerrero will continue to play Maritza Ramos.

The Orange Is The New Black trailer for Season 4 has raised a lot of questions because of the absence of fan favorite, Alex Vause, played by Laura Prepon. Also absent in the trailer is the character Nicky Nichols, played by Natasha Lynonne. Orange Is The New Black is one of the top Netflix original series, and has been applauded to displaying a diverse cast of characters from Black to Latino to transgender people.

Diane Guerrero is also one of the stars of the CW hit series, Jane The Virgin.

[Photo by Christopher Polk/Getty Images for Turner]

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