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The independent Cuban journalist Yosmany Mayeta Labrada appeared on Wednesday outside the Department of State building in Washington D.C. to submit documents and seek institutional attention for his case, as a crucial hearing before the Immigration Court is approaching, scheduled for July 2026, which could lead to a deportation order.
Wearing a shirt with the slogan "Free Cuba" and holding a yellow folder with papers, Mayeta posted a photograph taken in front of the official sign of the institution as a new public call to attention about her situation.
"Today I am immersed in a complex immigration situation that will define my future in the United States. As a crucial hearing approaches, I continue knocking on doors, submitting documents, and demanding that my case be evaluated with fairness and humanity," wrote the journalist on his social media.
The origin of the problem is administrative in nature: Mayeta arrived in the United States in 2019 with a J-1 visa, a category subject to section 212(e) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which requires two years of residence in the home country —or a waiver from the Department of State— before being able to adjust immigration status.
That process remained unresolved for approximately seven years, which led to its file being brought to the Immigration Court.
The judge overseeing the case denied a motion for postponement submitted by her lawyers, setting a mandatory appearance date before July 1, 2026.
The lawyers Yelena Guerra and Liudmila Armas Marcelo, who took on her defense pro bono on June 6, have publicly clarified that this is not a case of asylum but rather an administrative hurdle arising from the type of visa with which she entered the country.
Since early June, Mayeta has intensified his efforts. On the 6th of that month, he visited the Capitol and delivered letters to the offices of Cuban-American congressmen Mario Díaz-Balart, María Elvira Salazar, and Carlos Giménez.
On Tuesday, a day before his visit to the State Department, he made an urgent appeal to Secretary of State Marco Rubio to prevent the deportation from occurring.
Mayeta, a member of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU) since 2011 and known for his journalistic project "Kuba x Dentro" and the popular slogan "Súbelo, Mayeta," has documented years of blackouts, repression, and corruption in Santiago de Cuba.
The journalist himself has warned that a deportation could mean his immediate arrest upon setting foot in Cuba, given his history of activism against the regime.
"I did not come to this country seeking privileges. I came in search of freedom. I came looking for the opportunity to practice journalism without fear, without censorship, and without an opinion becoming a condemnation," Mayeta stated in the text that accompanied the photograph.
In February 2022, the journalist was physically and verbally assaulted by an official from the Cuban Embassy in Washington D.C. during a protest in front of that diplomatic office, an incident that exemplifies the level of hostility he has faced outside the island.
"Because behind every file there is a person. Behind every document, there is a story. And behind every request for assistance, there is a life waiting for a response," concluded Mayeta, whose hearing before the Immigration Court must take place before July 1, 2026.
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