A Cuban musician identified on TikTok as @elemy90 has touched the hearts of thousands with a raw and deeply human testimony after leaving his first immigration court in the United States, where he was informed that he has an deportation order and his case will be transferred to Orlando, Florida.
The video, which has accumulated over 2,200 comments, features a vulnerable man, without resources, questioning whether the enormous sacrifice he has made for his children was worth it.
"I have been away from Cuba for eight years. I spent almost four years in Peru and another four here. I left my children when they were a year and a half old. They are about to turn ten. Sometimes I drive myself crazy thinking whether it was worth it," says the musician, visibly affected.
"I don't even have a work permit. My life right now is in limbo."
His case accurately illustrates the uncertainty faced by thousands of Cuban migrants in the United States, particularly those who arrived via the border and remain under the category known as I-220A, a form of conditional admission that does not guarantee residency, work authorization, or legal stability.
During his hearing, the musician expected to receive a distant date, as has happened to other migrants he heard during the same Zoom session, but in his case, the judge informed him that he already had a deportation order.
However, the submitted documents do not contain such explicit order, only the notification of the transfer of the case to another immigration court.
After the video went viral, dozens of users offered him financial assistance. Some even asked for a number or link to send him money. Despite his precarious situation, having been without work and income for months, the musician publicly rejected those donations, arguing that it wouldn't be fair to other Cubans and Latinos in similar conditions but without visibility.
In a second video, after expressing gratitude for the encouraging messages he received following his initial testimony, he stated: “I know that assistance is not denied, but I would feel uncomfortable accepting something that others, perhaps in worse situations, have no way of receiving. I have helped when others have needed it, but public money should not be taken lightly.”
He also clarified that his music career, although it has received some support, does not generate income for him, and that the person currently aiding him does not have a contractual relationship with him, but rather acts as an informal patron. “I don’t have a record label. I don’t want it to seem like I’m using the help to make a music video. That wouldn’t be fair,” he explained.
I was alone. It is very difficult to understand what they tell you in that moment without knowing how to interpret it. The words weigh more when you are alone, he says.
Although he claims to read all the comments, he admits that he doesn't have the energy to respond to them all. He plans to do a live stream in the coming days to chat with his followers, whom he considers part of his journey.
I am eternally grateful. I just wanted to explain why sometimes one loses strength. It is not easy to stay firm when you feel that everything you have done is about to collapse, he concluded.
While waiting for an official notification regarding his new hearing in Orlando, the musician remains in a forced pause from his artistic career and daily struggles, in a land that promised opportunities but now seems to exact a toll of loneliness, uncertainty, and legal silence.
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