Denea (pronounced Denae) Joseph is an undocumented Black DACA recipient and national immigrant rights activist. She immigrated to the United States at the age of seven years old from Belize, Central America. It wasn’t until her junior year of high school that she realized the challenges she would face as a result of her immigrant identity. However, she was accepted into the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) where she commuted back and forth from South Los Angeles to Westwood because of the financial limitations for undocumented youth in higher education. Nevertheless, Denea persisted.
As an undergraduate at UCLA, Denea advocated for the creation of an immigration attorney position on campus and increased sustainable financial aid for undocumented youth across the University of California system. Additionally, as a Young People For(YP4) fellow, Denea developed a social justice blueprint to address undocumented access and retention in institutions of higher learning.
Denea is a regularly sought-after media commentator on immigration issues and has been vocal about her undocumented and Black experience. She has been featured in The Los Angeles Times, Essence, Vogue, The Guardian, and The Los Angeles Magazine's historic immigration issue, among others.
Denea attended the 2018 State of the Union address as the guest of California Senator Kamala Harris. Denea has been serving as the Vice President for the Black Los Angeles Young Democrats (BLAYD), California Ambassador for the United State of Women (USOW), and currently works as the National Entrepreneurship Manager at Immigrants Rising. She aspires to be a human rights attorney, advocating for the rights of the most marginalized around the globe.
Power, Policy, and Belonging: Making Sense of the Moment
In a time of political chaos, culture wars, and institutional shifts, Denea Joseph offers sharp, grounded insight on how identity, policy, and power collide. Blending personal story with strategic commentary, she breaks down the stakes behind the headlines—from immigration and race to education, civic leadership, and who gets to belong in public life. This session meets audiences where they are and invites them to think more clearly, act more courageously, and connect more deeply across difference.
Black UndocuJoy: Celebrating Identity, Community, and Power
To be Black and undocumented is often to be erased—but it’s also to be radiant. In this powerful and affirming session, Denea Joseph highlights the brilliance, creativity, and cultural power of Black undocumented communities. Through personal story, media, and movement history, she uplifts the ways people have cultivated joy, built community, and led with love in the face of exclusion. More than a story of survival, this is a celebration of identity, imagination, and collective strength.
Beyond the DREAM: The Fight for Citizenship in a Post-DACA America
With DACA under constant legal and political threat, what’s next for undocumented communities? This presentation provides a historical overview of immigrant activism, analyzing the temporary solutions to a longstanding problem and the ongoing struggle for permanent solutions that center all undocumented people—including those left out of mainstream advocacy efforts.
Entrepreneurship for Undocumented Students: From Idea to Action
This session will provide an essential understanding of business structures and legal considerations for undocumented entrepreneurs. Participants will explore how entrepreneurship intersects with fields like STEM, the arts, and social impact, helping students see the possibilities beyond traditional employment. Attendees will also learn strategies for guiding students through ideation, business planning, and problem-solving, setting them up for success.
Our Liberation is Bound Together: Why Intersectional Movements Matter
In a letter to Angela Davis, James Baldwin once said, "If they take you in the morning, they will be coming for us that night." This is the same approach that we must take in our organizing, understanding that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. In a time of deep political divides, liberation requires more than just one voice—it demands collective action. Our Liberation is Bound Together explores the power of intersectional movements, showing how racial, immigrant, and economic justice causes are interconnected, and why true solidarity is critical in the fight against systemic oppression. Drawing from both historical and contemporary examples, it offers a pathway for uniting across political lines to challenge injustice and build a future where no one is left behind.
Under-Protected, Over-Policed: The Criminalization of Undocumented and Black Immigrants
Immigration is often framed as a Latinx issue, erasing the experiences of Black immigrants. As a result, Black immigrants are often ignored in conversations surrounding the migrant caravan, mass raids, detention and deportation. Under-Protected, Over-Policed uncovers the sinister tactics used to disproportionately detain and deport undocumented and Black immigrants and explores how Black immigrants are organizing to claim their space in the broader immigration justice movement.
