A Cuban tearfully reported on social media the arrest of her cousin by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of the United States, even though the man had immigration documents in process.
According to the woman, her cousin arrived in the U.S. by sea about four years ago and was arrested while heading to Houston, Texas.
"We are dogs," exclaimed the Cuban woman, summarizing in three words the feeling of humiliation and helplessness that thousands of Cubans experience in the face of the intensified immigration raids that have escalated throughout 2026.
The man carried the I-220A form, an ICE supervision order that allows the individual to remain free while their immigration case progresses, but does not grant permanent legal status or automatic protection against detention or deportation.
Having a valid work permit does not, on its own, prevent arrest if the person remains under immigration supervision without a definitive status, a reality that many Cubans are unaware of until it is too late.
The case is not isolated. ICE increased the detentions of Cuban migrants by 463% between October 2025 and April 2026, according to reports, amidst the tightening of the immigration policy under the Trump administration.
Among the documented cases this year is that of Cristian Michel García Gil, a 24-year-old Cuban with I-220A, who was detained on December 12, 2025, in Miami while on his way to work, despite having a valid work permit and driver's license. He was released in May after five months of detention through a habeas corpus petition.
On March 31, two Cuban pastors with work permits were arrested in Texas during a routine appointment with ICE, yet another example of how administrative processes have become a trap for this community.
On May 28, a federal judge ordered the release of Mauricio Castellanos-Gorra after nearly seven months detained by ICE, applying the principle from the 2001 Zadvydas v. Davis case, which limits prolonged detention when deportation is not reasonably foreseeable.
In Florida, several Cuban women with I-220A were detained during their check-in appointments with ICE on March 10, 2025, which raised alarm among the Cuban community in that state.
The I-220A form was issued en masse during the Cuban migration wave of 2022 and 2023, leaving hundreds of thousands of people in legal limbo: on supervised release, without formal immigration status, and without automatic access to the Cuban Adjustment Act.
Texas, and particularly the Houston area, is one of the states with the highest concentration of Cubans holding this document and has been the scene of multiple documented arrests in recent months.
It is estimated that around 400,000 Cubans are in a state of migratory uncertainty with the I-220A in the U.S., vulnerable to being arrested at any moment: during routine appointments, traffic stops, or ICE operations.
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