My parents instilled a lot of American values in me. They encouraged me to work hard and told me that anything was possible for me because I was a citizen.
While awaiting deportation proceedings, my parents remained in detention near Boston, so I could visit them. They would have liked to fight deportation, but without a lawyer and an immigration system that rarely gives judges the discretion to allow families to stay together, they never had a chance.
I worked a variety of jobs in retail and at coffee shops all through high school. And, though I was surrounded by people who cared about me, part of me ached with every accomplishment, because my parents weren't there to share my joy.
As a kid, I felt like I had no voice, felt like I had no options, and that's what drove me to this really dark place.
Crazy Jane is a complex individual who always has a lot brewing. She tries to hold things together on the surface, which is something that we all try to do. She uses these different personalities to try to cope with life.
It's disheartening to see the hate speech and the divisive behavior. But at the same time, I have to believe that smart people and good people of this country don't give in to that.
My father, who worked as a dishwasher, was especially anxious. He did not like being here undocumented.
We have to educate our communities about the immigration system and dispel the myths that have been fed to us. Immigration isn't going to go away. A wall isn't going to 'solve' the issue.
This is the kind of stuff me and my friends talk about. We sit around and drink coffee, and we're really angry: We're like, 'Where's the Latino Museum?' Where can we go with our families, where can we go with our friends to learn about our history?
My parents came here from Colombia during a time of great instability there. Escaping a dire economic situation at home, they moved to New Jersey, where they had friends and family, seeking a better life, and then moved to Boston after I was born.
I love entertaining people! It's who I am.
I was voted Most Happy-Go-Lucky in high school. Can you believe that? I was crying every other day by myself, but I was voted Most Optimistic and Most Likely to Have Her Own Television Talk Show.
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?'
'Doom Patrol' is doing the most - and the wackiest - things, but when you've been alive in this time, you know it's actually not so wacky. Awful, strange, and inexplicable things do happen.
All of the characters on 'Doom Patrol' explore traumatic pasts, how to deal with those pasts, and how that affects their present and their future.
When you watch 'Doom Patrol,' you'll see most of the characters are trying to run away from their feelings and their emotions, and the minute they take a second and look at themselves face to face, that's when things can actually get resolved and get one step closer to peace.
I definitely had to pave my own path, which wasn't always the easiest thing to do.
Some people have issues in their past that might make them tweak out at certain moments, but it's possible to snap back and be a real human being.
My real story is this: I am the citizen daughter of immigrant parents who were deported when I was 14. My older brother was also deported.
Deporting asylum seekers back to violence does not reflect the values of our country.
