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At 70 years old, Felipe Muñoz did not choose to give up. Deported from the United States and with his life divided in two, this Cuban barber decided to start over from scratch with an improvised chair, a pair of scissors, and a public park in Villahermosa, Tabasco, where he now earns a living by cutting hair.
Every day, wearing a white coat and treating others with respect, Felipe sets up his small workspace in Parque Juárez. He doesn’t ask for help or appeal for compassion. He charges 50 pesos per haircut and relies on over three decades of experience to survive with dignity.
His story was told by the Mexican media Tabasco Hoy, which documented how the Cuban started working just a day after arriving in the city, after being deported at the end of 2024.
"I am here earning an honest living, cutting hair," said Muñoz, who explained that he bought his tools with a credit card he still had from the United States.
Among its clients are Mexican mothers with children, local workers, and also Cuban and Venezuelan migrants who resonate with their story of loss and new beginnings.
The image of Felipe working in silence takes on greater significance in a context marked by tension. In recent days, Tabasco was the scene of a security operation that resulted in the detention of a Cuban citizen for alleged drug-related offenses, an event that has fueled concern and stigma surrounding a migrant community already battered by uncertainty and precariousness.
While some cases dominate police headlines, other Cubans, like Felipe, fight the battle of survival without drawing attention, clinging to honest work as their only lifeline.
Far from playing the victim, the barber expresses gratitude for the treatment he received in Mexico. He knows that the park is just a stopover. His true destination lies across the Atlantic, where his daughters and grandchildren are waiting for him in Spain. Until then, each haircut is also an act of resistance.
The story of Felipe Muñoz reminds us that Cuban migration cannot be measured solely by statistics or police events. Behind each name lies a journey marked by displacement, but also by the determination to start anew, even when life forces one to do so at 70 years old.
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