Cristina Jiménez Moreta (born 1983 or 1984) is an Ecuadoran immigration activist who co-founded United We Dream in 2008. In 2017, Jiménez Moreta was named a

MacArthur Fellow The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and colloquially called the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to typically between 20 and 30 individuals workin ...

and won the Freedom From Fear Award. Jiménez was included in ''Time'' magazine's ''100 Most Influential People of 2018.''

Early life and education

Jiménez Moreta was born in

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

. At the time of her birth, Jiménez Moreta's mother was a seamstress and her father was a bank security guard. When she was a teenager, she and her family moved to the United States as undocumented immigrants. Jiménez Moreta completed a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

Queens College Queens College (QC) is a public college in the New York City borough of Queens. Part of the City University of New York system, Queens College occupies an campus primarily located in Flushing. Queens College was established in 1937 and offe ...

in 2007 and a

Master of Public Administration A Master of Public Administration (MPA) is a specialized professional graduate degree in public administration that prepares students for leadership roles, similar or equivalent to a Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the ...

Baruch College Baruch College (officially the Bernard M. Baruch College) is a public college in New York City, United States. It is a constituent college of the City University of New York system. Named for financier and statesman Bernard M. Baruch, the colle ...

in 2011.

Career

When Jiménez Moreta illegally immigrated to the United States, she became a babysitter and an assistant. After experiencing educational barriers as an undocumented immigrant, she dedicated herself to public service and advancing civil rights, focused primarily on youth activism. Early on in her advocacy career, Jiménez Moreta created multiple activism groups in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, including Make the Road New York. In 2008, she joined Drum Major Institute to work in immigration policy and remained with the institute until 2010. At the same time she started working with Drum Major, Jiménez Moreta became a co-founder of United We Dream, which is an organization that advocates for undocumented Americans. With United We Dream, Jiménez Moreta influenced the enactment of the

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is a Immigration policy of the United States, United States immigration policy that allows some individuals who, on June 15, 2012, were physically present in the United States with no lawful immigra ...

in 2012.

Awards and honors

In 2017, Jiménez Moreta was one of the recipients of the

MacArthur Fellows Program The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and colloquially called the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the MacArthur Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to typically between 20 and ...

. The same year, she was awarded the Freedom From Fear Award. In 2019, she won the Robert Coles "Call of Service" Award, given by the Phillips Brooks House Association at Harvard University. In 2020, Moreta was named as one of

USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...

's Women of the Century, which recognizes women who have made a "substantial impact on our country or our lives over the past 100 years".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jiménez Moreta, Cristina Living people 1984 births Ecuadorian activists Ecuadorian women activists MacArthur Fellows Immigrant rights activists Undocumented immigrants to the United States 21st-century Ecuadorian women Women founders