Cubans, Many in the US for Decades, Deported to Mexico

Human Rights Watch has just dropped a bombshell report, "'Casting Us Aside to Die,'" revealing the Trump administration secretive deportation of over 4,300 Cuban nationals, many long-term U.S. residents and elderly with chronic health issues, to Mexico since January 2025. This unprecedented policy, detailed by HRW on May 27, 2026, has seen thousands, including those without criminal records, denied due process and abandoned in Mexican border cities like Villahermosa and Tapachula without basic services or legal recourse. This surge in deportations marks a dramatic shift, with the U.S. leveraging an undisclosed agreement with Mexico to offload individuals whose home government, Cuba, refuses repatriation. Prior to President Trump's second term, such mass transfers of long-term Cuban residents to Mexico were uncommon. The report underscores a profound humanitarian crisis, as these vulnerable deportees are cut off from vital medications and housing, often landing them in violent regions with limited support, making them targets for exploitation. The Human Rights Watch report issues urgent calls: the U.S. must uphold due process and consider humanitarian factors like age and health before transfers, while Mexico must provide immediate shelter, healthcare, and a viable path to legal status beyond its overwhelmed asylum system. Absent these changes, thousands will remain in a perilous legal limbo, vulnerable to criminal organizations and unable to rebuild lives after decades in the U.S., intensifying pressure on both administrations to clarify their policies.