The power of one voice

Escrito por: Alexa Figueroa 🇸🇻

Headshot of Diana Rivera. (Isai Amaya-Diaz)

“Always question the system” is the mentality that Diana Rivera grew up with. Her mom, who is an activist, instilled in her a passion for freedom that has translated into her college career and her aspirations for the future. 

La trayectoria de Rivera comenzó con su madre, quien llegó a los Estados Unidos a principios de la década de 2000 y luego conoció al padre de Rivera. She has two sisters who were born in El Salvador and eventually came to the U.S. as well. 

Su infancia estuvo llena de manifestaciones de CASA y de asistencias a las reuniones sindicales de su madre.

“I would joke around when I was younger that I was only going for the food,” said Rivera. “But I was always surrounded by the people who were fighting for rights of their workers, rights of immigrants. It was just always an environment that I was surrounded by.” 

Her love for activism led her to join a variety of organizations on campus, such as the Political Latinxs United for Movement and Action in Society (PLUMAS), La Voz Latina, and Maryland Latin Dance Club (MLDC), which allowed her to connect with and fight for the Latino community. But this work was not always an uphill journey, as she found it difficult to be an advocate, especially because of her personal ties to the mission. 

“It was difficult at times because, at the same time, you're fighting for your voice to be heard and you feel like you're screaming and no one's really listening,” said Rivera. “You take this home with you. You take this to sleep with you. This is your reality, and you're trying to convince people to see that.” 

Family of Diana Rivera. (Courtesy of Diana Rivera)

Rivera started off her journey at UMD as a C.D. Mote, Jr. Incentive Awards Program scholar. Estudió ingeniería aeroespacial durante sus primeros dos años, pero finalmente reprobó una materia obligatoria y tuvo que cambiar de especialidad.

“I don't really have anyone in my family who's gone through this, so I didn't know what the best decisions were at the time, and so I spent that semester doing physics classes, but then realized it wasn't for me, and then I switched. I found infosci, and I was like, I love it here,” she said. 

Rivera está buscando trabajo en educación superior porque quiere ayudar a los estudiantes a alcanzar sus sueños, ya que sus mentores la han ayudado a llegar a donde está hoy.

“We ignore how far we've come. While we're trying to push through and be better, we forget that we've already done so much and forget to celebrate ourselves. So I'm just happy and proud of how far I've come,” Rivera said. 

“Me siento muy orgullosa de Diana, muy contenta y agradecida con Dios y la vida.” - Rivera’s mother