A Cuban resident in Miami announced his permanent return to the island in a video published on TikTok last Saturday, which garnered over 272,700 views and sparked a debate within the Cuban diaspora community.
Ariel Rojas, identified on the platform as @ariel.rojas0324, reported that he has been working in a drying salon since three in the morning, and that his earnings are not enough to cover his rent and the care of his cat.
"I bought three chainsaws and sent them over to Cuba to support myself and some small businesses I have because I am really tired of too much stress here," he explained in the clip.
The physical impact of exhaustion was one of the most striking points in his account: "I came with hair, and I've lost all my hair; it all fell out. Life here is too stressful, honestly, I couldn't stand living here."
Ariel acknowledged that his decision would generate criticism, but he defended it as a matter of mental health. He even anticipated the conditions that await him in Cuba without that changing his determination: “It doesn’t matter, there may be a blackout, it doesn’t matter... where I feel good, I will feel good, I will feel freedom of my time, I will feel more comfortable, more relaxed, I don’t have to pay for anything.”
His plan for making a living on the island is clear: to produce charcoal with the three chainsaws he has already sent along with his father.
The next day, in a second video with less reach, he clarified his position without retreating. He acknowledged that the United States "is a country full of opportunities," but emphasized that this does not ensure everyone's well-being: "Eighty pesos a day, my brother, given how things are today here, it doesn’t even cover your groceries for a week."
Ariel's case is not an isolated one. A Cuban woman announced her return to the island in March because she was "tired of paying bills," and in July, HG Texido sold all his furniture to return with his family in a video that surpassed 119,000 views. Earlier, in February, Migdi Pérez had made the same decision after 12 years in the United States.
The trend has become recurrent on TikTok since 2025, although those returning face an equally tough reality in Cuba: prolonged blackouts, shortages of food and medicine, and a collapsing economy.
Ariel closed his first video with a message to the Cuban diaspora: "Pursue your dreams and don't let the opinions of others matter, let the only opinion that matters be your own."
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