Of all refugee/immigrant groups, Cubans have always enjoyed a ‘safe’ status, courtesy of the “wet feet, dry feet policy.” An added feeling of security is this administration’s Cuban-American Secretary of State, or you would think. For decades, Cubans arriving in the U.S. benefited from laws that gave them near-automatic protection and a fast track to residency. The thinking was: If you were fleeing Castro’s communist Cuba, you deserved refuge in the land of the free. That goodwill helped build the powerful Cuban-American political bloc, especially in places like Miami. But now, that privileged status is starting to feel shaky.
The administration has already stripped humanitarian protections from 300,000 Cubans. And while Trump remains hugely popular among older Cuban voters, this latest move feels like a betrayal to some — especially those who voted for him in hopes of stronger anti-Castro policies, not deportation threats against their own.
Adding fuel to the fire, GOP lawmakers like Rep. Carlos Giménez are actively pushing for investigations and removals of former Cuban officials living in the U.S. But it’s not just about rooting out spies. There’s growing anxiety that the dragnet is catching too many in its path — including people who’ve lived here peacefully for years and genuinely fled oppression.
The irony? Deporting half a million Cubans would take centuries at the current pace of one monthly flight to Havana. So, for now, fear — not actual policy results — is causing uncertainty that has long plagued other immigrant groups and is a new reality for those who thought they were safe. Go beyond the headlines…
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