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Cuban detainees at the largest immigration detention center of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have reported being beaten, chained, and pressured to accept their deportation to Mexico, a country where they have no citizenship or minimal guarantees of protection.
The reports, gathered by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and submitted to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement, paint a picture of violence, coercion, and violations of due process within the Fort Bliss facility in Texas.
According to The Washington Post, the testimony of four Cubans, shared under anonymity due to fear of retaliation, describes episodes of brutality that begin within the facility itself, including head slamming against a wall, twisting of ankles, crushing of testicles, and threats of prolonged incarceration.
According to reports, the aggression intensified when they expressed fear of being sent to Mexico, a country where they had no connections or legal protection.
One of them reported that after refusing to sign a document agreeing to his deportation, he was thrown to the ground, handcuffed, and forced onto a bus headed for the border. Another stated that he lost consciousness after being beaten while asking for access to his medications.
Everyone agreed that upon reaching the dividing line, a group of masked men pressured them to cross into Mexico under the threat of being imprisoned in El Salvador or sent "to Africa" if they refused.
The Trump administration has defended these deportations to "third countries", even though they were previously exceptional for Cuban citizens due to Cuba's historical refusal to accept mass repatriation flights.
However, the practice has accelerated following a provisional ruling by the Supreme Court that allows expulsions with only six hours' notice, without a prior hearing and without ensuring that detainees can file claims for fear of torture, as established by the Convention Against Torture, ratified by the United States.
While these allegations come to light, just a few days ago, the final fate of many Cubans who were expelled to Mexico was documented. Far from receiving protection, they end up abandoned in Villahermosa, Tabasco, without legal status or prospects for formal employment.
Many survive by carrying water or working in markets, others fall ill without access to medicine, and some elderly individuals deported after decades living in the United States, suffering from diabetes, hypertension, or vision loss, face their new lives without family, without resources, and without rights.
Mexico receives these deportees, but does not provide them with any documents that would allow them to work or reside legally. They are caught in a migratory limbo: too vulnerable to settle down and with no real possibility of returning to the U.S., where many left behind children, partners, and debts.
The cases from Fort Bliss reveal that, before reaching that limbo, some Cuban migrants face the hell of pressure and brute force to compel them to accept a fate they did not choose.
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