Washington, D.C. – Today, TIME named Greisa Martínez Rosas, Executive Director of United We Dream, to its inaugural TIME Visionaries list, recognizing fourteen leaders nationwide who are driving meaningful impact in the lives of young people across education, health and wellness, technology, economic opportunity, and more.
From her roots as a student organizer in Texas, to now leading the nation’s largest immigrant youth organization with over 1.2 million members, Greisa has dedicated her life to nurturing and growing the power of young people to organize and win real change in their communities. TIME’s recognition comes just one day after hundreds of immigrant youth and the children of immigrants mobilized to Washington D.C. to commemorate the 14th anniversary of DACA, a program fought for and won by young immigrants and shaped by the leadership of organizers like Greisa. Since 2012, DACA’s victory has transformed the lives of hundreds of thousands of young immigrants, opening doors to pursue college, build careers, and deepen their lives in the country they call home.
You can read more about Greisa’s recognition here and explore the full 2026 TIME Visionaries list here.
Describing Greisa Martínez Rosas, TIME wrote:
“As a high school senior in Dallas in 2006, Greisa Martínez Rosas helped organize hundreds of her classmates to walk out in protest of a federal bill that would have made it a felony to be an undocumented immigrant. She herself was undocumented; her family had come to Texas from Hidalgo, Mexico, when she was a child. ‘I grew up feeling really ashamed about that and really scared,’ she says. ‘Fear, I think, is a fuel to get us to a different world.’
Now, Martínez Rosas is fighting to create that world as Executive Director of United We Dream. In the role, the 37-year-old has fought to preserve Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Martínez Rosas sees her organization’s work as one part of achieving a larger goal: creating a more hopeful future for young Dreamers. ‘For me, this idea of citizenship is really about belonging—and a belonging that creates stability for families, for kids, for society,’ she says.”
Greisa Martínez Rosas, Executive Director of United We Dream, said:
“It is an honor to be named to TIME’s inaugural list of visionary leaders. Growing up as a young, queer immigrant in Texas, I knew what it was like to be isolated physically, politically, and economically from the fabric of our country; to be told that my voice didn’t matter.
The truth is: my story isn’t rare. It’s repeated in millions of young people all across this country, who refuse to live our lives in the shadows any longer and have always believed that working people, including immigrants, should have a greater voice in how the wealth we have helped build for this country is shared. From student walkouts in Texas to hunger strikes in California, immigrant youth have always been the visionaries who have taken bold, courageous action to build a future where everyone, no matter their status, class, race or gender, is able to live freely, with safety and dignity. I have always believed in the transformative power of young immigrants and all working people to move this country forward, and that is why this TIME recognition isn’t mine, it’s theirs. It is a powerful reminder that young immigrants are the visionaries we must invest in.”
