Diane Guerrero
| Diane Guerrero | |
|---|---|
Guerrero at the 2016 Texas Book Festival.
|
|
| Born |
July 21, 1986 New Jersey, United States |
| Occupation | Actress, philanthropist |
| Years active | 2011–present |
Diane Guerrero (born July 21, 1986) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as inmate Maritza Ramos on the Netflix series Orange Is the New Black and Lina on Jane the Virgin. Among her other roles was a recurring role on Are We There Yet? Guerrero grew up in Boston and remained there after the rest of her family was deported to Colombia. She is an advocate for immigration reform. Her role on Orange Is the New Black has twice contributed to wins for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series.
Guerrero was born in New Jersey to Colombian parents and raised in Boston, Massachusetts. As the only member of her immediate family with United States citizenship, she remained in the U.S. when her parents and older brother were deported back to Colombia when she was 14. Her parents had pursued legal citizenship, but their representation failed them.
Guerrero was raised in the Jamaica Plain and Roxbury neighborhoods of Boston after being taken in by other Colombian families. She has had an interest in acting since a young age and took advantage of free opportunities in the neighborhood or at school. Then she attended Boston Arts Academy, a performing arts high school, where she was in the music department. Among her high school activities was singing with a jazz group, but she anticipated pursuing political science and communications in college. In 2010, she appeared in the Faces music video that was shot in Norwood, Massachusetts for Louie Bello. Her first job after college was in a law office. At age 24, she decided to pursue a career in acting. In 2011, she moved to New York City and studied acting at the Susan Batson Studios where she met her manager Josh Taylor. Guerrero's life experience compels her to advocate for immigration reform and is an influence that she draws upon in her acting.
...
Wikipedia