All face “obstacles to regularizing their status” and express their willingness to meet with Trump representatives.
14ymedio, Havana, May 11, 2025 — A group of Cuban activists living in the United States have addressed an open letter to the Trump administration regarding their “uncertain migratory situation”. Victims, mostly of persecution by the regime, surveillance by state security and multiple acts of repression and repudiation, ask Washington for “humanitarian attention, review of asylum applications and legal support”.
The signatories ask in their statement “to make visible and explore ways to find a solution” to the climate of migratory tension in which they live, despite having requested protection against the regime on the island. All face “obstacles to regularizing their status” and express their willingness to meet with representatives of Trump, or independent organizations and individuals.
In particular, they wish to meet with the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, “to present and deliver in writing the files on our cases”.
[[The signatories call in their statement for “visibility and exploration of ways to find a solution” to the climate of migratory tension in which they live]]
They also recall that since the massive protests of 11 July 2021, both repression in Cuba and the migratory stampede have intensified. Millions of Cubans – among them many opponents – traveled to the U.S., fleeing “a dictatorship that has seized our country, leaving Cubans no choice but death, prison, silence or exile.”
With Trump’s immigration policy, many risk being victimized for a second time, not in a dictatorship like the Cuban one, but in a “democratic environment” like that of the United States. They claim the “political and forced character of the exodus” and the fact that Cubans had to travel through an “irregular migratory corridor” allowed by two regimes, Miguel Díaz-Canel in Cuba and Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua.
Several of the exiles actually had to go “from prison to the airport.” They now face an equally tense situation, as some of the exiles in the U.S. are “in imminent danger of deportation,” such as freelance journalist Lazaro Yuri Valle Roca and his wife Eralidis Frometa.
Also in a situation of “extreme emergency”, reported this week by this newspaper, is the rapper Eliexer Márquez, El Funky, one of the authors of the libertarian anthem Patria and Life and winner of two Grammy awards. The singer received a deportation order and has had financial difficulties in the country.
They claim the “political and forced character of the exodus,” and the fact that Cubans had to pass through an “irregular migratory corridor”
The letter is addressed to several politicians of Cuban descent, both Republicans and Democrats, such as Trump’s secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and congress members Mario Díaz-Balart, María Elvira Salazar, Carlos Giménez and Rob Menendez. They are also addressing other high-ranking officials who may have an influence on the issue, such as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, in addition to Senator Rick Scott and Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman from Florida.
Among the signatories, of whom all details are given in particular cases, are Daniela Ferrer, seven-year-old daughter of the opponent José Daniel Ferrer, whose release was recently revoked by the regime; the scientist Oscar Casanella, participant in the San Isidro protest, in 2020; Julio César Góngora, Alexeys Blanco, José Rolando Casares Soto and Yamilka Abascal Sánchez, human rights activists; 11J protesters Yaneris Redondo and Mariana Fernández; journalist Esteban Rodríguez; and the academics and activists Anamely Ramos and Omara Ruiz Urquiola, victims of multiple repressive actions by the regime.
Translated by Regina Anavy
____________
COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.
