Oscar Casanella, pursued in Cuba and unprotected in the U.S.: "My political asylum may take 10 years or more"

Oscar Casanella (February 22, 1979) is a biochemist and former professor of Immunology at the University of Havana, but he is also a target of the dictatorship led by Miguel Díaz-Canel. After being harassed by state security agents who prevented him from leaving his home in Cuba, and enduring disruptions to his communications and constant pressure, he left the island in 2021 with his wife, who was then six months pregnant, and a young child. Three years later, he still has not been able to regularize his immigration status in the United States. CiberCuba has shown interest in his situation.

It is surprising that despite being an intellectual persecuted by the Cuban dictatorship, you do not have your residency secured in the United States. What has happened?

I believe my situation is the result of a combination of factors. The short answer is that I have been harassed by the Cuban political police in other Latin American countries, that the United States suspended the political refugee program for Cubans in 2017, that I entered the United States without permission by crossing the southern border, that at that border immigration authorities did not conduct a credible fear interview or investigate my case, that I was not granted Parole but instead received a document known as I220 A, that individuals like me who receive I220 A do not have the right to apply for residency under the Cuban Adjustment Act, that my first asylum hearing is scheduled for May 2025, and that subsequent hearings are being set by immigration judges for five years after the initial one.

The longer answer is that I never planned to emigrate permanently. I really enjoy traveling, but I always returned to Cuba until I was placed under house arrest for almost the entire year of 2021. Not only was I unable to leave the house, but the political police also cut off mobile communications for my wife and me. We couldn’t work under those conditions, and in the last few months, we lived by selling our clothes, furniture, and appliances. It was under these circumstances that we decided that if the opportunity arose, we would leave Cuba.

The political police had me “regulated” since 2018 due to all the support I provided to my friend Ariel Ruiz Urquiola. Additionally, I had a G2 operation and police presence outside my house 24 hours a day that prevented me from going out. A few days before the protest called by the Archipiélago group for November 15, 2021, the political police informed me that I would be allowed to leave my house and the country, but only within a one-month window. If I did not leave Cuba within that month, I would face imprisonment (closed regime).

I had already gone through the bitter experience in the Dominican Republic in 2017 of being interrogated and threatened by supposed officials of the airline Pawa Dominicana at the airport in Santo Domingo, who behaved exactly like agents of the Cuban G2, asking me who had paid for my ticket, questioning my friendships with other Cuban activists, and threatening to take action if I used Dominican territory to conspire against the Cuban regime. After this experience, my opinion was that if there is any country where the Cuban political police cannot commit these abuses, it is the United States.

My wife, who was over seven months pregnant, my eldest son, who is four years old, and I arrived at the southern border of the United States through El Paso, Texas, on January 16, 2022, after a journey through various countries that included arrest, mistreatment, and deportation in Mexico, a ban on entering Nicaragua, two airport layovers, and more.

In my opinion, the handling of immigrants at the southern border of the United States was terrible. I thought that after being detained by immigration authorities, I would undergo a credible fear interview and my story would be investigated. None of that happened. We spent 2 days in the detention center and were released on January 18, 2022, with an I220 A document and without a "Notice to Appear." The granting of parole, a document that allows the application for residency under the Cuban Adjustment Act, and the issuance of the I220 A occurred randomly and without a prior credible fear interview.

Her departure from Cuba was an odyssey until she reached the United States. However, we see that Cuban repressors arriving in the U.S. under humanitarian parole are able to regularize their status. How does this situation affect you?

The presence of known political repressors, reported both on websites and on represorescubanos.com, as well as by their victims on social media, leads many people, including myself, to distrust the effectiveness of the U.S. immigration authorities. I believe these repressors should face consequences and should not share the same space, enjoying the rights they denied us in Cuba as their victims. It is highly likely that many of them lied or concealed information during their immigration processes.

What legal solution does your case have?

I am not a lawyer, but based on what I have learned about legal matters, the sure solution for my case is to continue my political asylum process. My asylum case is solid. The problem is that the entire process can take 10 years or more. This creates many challenges for my family and me in accessing credit to purchase a home, pursuing master's degrees at a university in the United States as a resident, obtaining certain jobs, and traveling outside the United States. I primarily want to provide stability for my children.

This week, we have seen that Omara Ruiz Urquiola has been denied a student visa because she does not wish to apply for the Cuban Adjustment Act and instead wants to return to Cuba, which complicates her legal status in the U.S. Do you think it's just a coincidence that you find yourself in a similar situation?

Honestly, I don't have an answer to this question.

Do you think that, in some way, the Biden Administration has sidelined Cuban exiles?

In my opinion, I believe that the issue of Cuba and its exile is not among the priorities of the Democratic Party Administration, and that the approach to policy regarding the Cuban regime has not been effective. I think Obama conducted an experiment by engaging his Administration with the Cuban dictatorship, and the consequences included an increase in the regime's capacity for repression and social control against civil society, as well as prolonging the existence of a system that is in decline. The problem is that each day the regime remains in power brings another day of great suffering for the Cuban people.

Many of the prisoners from the Black Spring who were exiled in Spain have faced significant hardships. Are the true exiles after July 11, 2021 experiencing the same?

I don't dare to speak on behalf of all the true exiles following July 11, but in my experience, I have received support from many Cubans. However, that hasn't prevented me from facing many challenges, as starting from scratch in a new country involves going through a traumatic adaptation process.

Here in South Florida, where I live, there is a large Cuban community that is supportive and has welcomed many of us. Here, I have reconnected with old friends and received their help. I have also made new friendships with remarkable individuals who have been a great support to me.

Have you felt embraced by the historic exile of Miami? I have had the honor of meeting many members of the historic exile and being invited to several of their events.