In the Country We Love: My Family Divided

In the Country We Love: My Family Divided (2016) is a memoir by American actress Diane Guerrero (with Michelle Burford). The narrative chronicles how the US government deported Guerrero’s undocumented parents to Colombia when she was 14 years old. The title emphasizes the author’s patriotism, which she projects onto her parents and the undocumented community more broadly with the use of the plural. Guerrero writes in simple prose and organizes the material chronologically, relying on the power of her experiences as the child of undocumented immigrants to create a humanizing portrait of the collateral damage caused by current immigration policies. Family photographs divide the chapters.

The introduction describes a life-changing event: The deportation of Guerrero’s parents by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Chapters 1-6 focus on Guerrero’s life with her family before the deportation. Her parents (Mami and Papi) work menial jobs and instill in Guerrero and her older brother, Eric, a profound fear of the authorities. The family is poor, but close-knit. Mami and Papi pursue various avenues to legalize their status in the US, including hiring a fake lawyer who cons them out of thousands of dollars. The family’s luck changes when Guerrero gains acceptance at the Boston Arts Academy (BAA) and Papi wins the lottery. This bright period abruptly ends, however, when Mami reopens an old green card application and draws the attention of ICE, who arrest Guerrero’s parents. They soon join Eric, whom ICE deported to Colombia at an earlier date.

Chapters 6-12 follow Guerrero through adolescence and young adulthood without her parents. Two family friends take her in after the deportation. Guerrero misses her parents and turns to school for distraction. She thrives in the artistic environment at the BAA, ending her high school career on a high note with a successful recital. Her life begins to unravel during her time at Regis College, where she starts drinking and cutting herself. She accrues huge debts and falls into a deep depression that culminates in a suicide attempt.  

Chapters 13-17 describe Guerrero’s long journey toward mental health and self-actualization. She begins seeing a therapist who encourages her to pursue an acting career. She perseveres through personal and professional setbacks until finally landing the role of Maritza Ramos on the Netflix series, Orange is the New Black. A recurring role on ABC’s Jane the Virgin and a SAG award for her work on Orange bring her professional satisfaction. Determined to use her success to help others, she pens an op-ed for the Los Angeles Times about her family’s experiences before sharing a more complete version of her story in this memoir. The book concludes with statistics about immigration, an overview of immigration policies, and a poignant call to action.

This summary refers to the 2017 English-language edition published by St. Martin’s Griffin, ISBN-10: 125013496X.

https://www.amazon.com/Country-We-Love-Divided-Material/dp/125013496X/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=