The Cuban-American immigration attorney Willy Allen warned that the political climate created by the Trump Administration might be fostering a return to McCarthyism, with a persecution particularly affecting the Cuban community in Miami.
"Right now, there is to some extent a witch hunt in Miami regarding Cubans who may or may not have been in the government, who do or do not have families that were in the Cuban government," Allen stated in an interview with Tania Costa to discuss the current migration landscape.
The lawyer clarified that he does not oppose the deportation of those who arrived in the United States as members of the Cuban regime and lied about it. "Personally, I agree that anyone who has come to the United States, who was a member of the Cuban government and has lied, should be deported. They come here now to live off what we have built, after what they destroyed in Cuba," he stated.
However, Allen drew a clear line between that legitimate action and the generalization that, in his opinion, is taking place. "But you can't have a wave where everyone who doesn't agree with you at the moment is seen as miserable," he warned.
The parallel with historical McCarthyism was explicit. Allen recalled that Joseph McCarthy, the senator from Wisconsin, unleashed a campaign in the 1950s that ruined the careers of actors, writers, and ordinary people accused without solid evidence of being communists. "We've seen movies about that, we haven't lived it, but we've seen the movies," Tania Costa pointed out.
For Allen, the rhetoric of President Trump reflects that spirit. "You can't start saying that the president of a country claims he will eliminate a free press... that he will vote and remove communists who don't really exist," he stated. The lawyer emphasized that by publicly identifying his opponents as enemies, Trump is fueling a dangerous atmosphere. "He is creating enemies. And when a president does that, he is identifying who his enemies are."
His conclusion was straightforward: "I believe that if McCarthyism can return, it would be in the environment that this government is creating of hatred and disdain."
This context is framed within a migration policy that Allen described as openly hostile. According to data the lawyer has cited in recent sessions on the migration landscape, the Trump administration is denying 94% of asylum claims, has revoked 250,000 visas, and has reduced the number of naturalizations by 75%.
"When you see that it is a government that has reduced the number of naturalized citizens by 75%, that is denying 94% of asylum requests, that has revoked 250,000 visas, you realize the stance of a government that is completely anti-immigrant," she stated.
In parallel, in 2026, there have been arrests and deportations of Cubans in Miami accused of concealing ties to the repressive or intelligence apparatus of the dictatorship when applying for immigration status in the United States. According to Allen, these legitimate actions against actual repressors coexist with a generalization that may harm innocent Cubans whose only "offense" is not sharing the dominant political line.
The lawyer mentioned Congressman Joe García as someone with "very strong ideas" about the witch hunt in Miami and suggested that he would be a valuable interlocutor to delve deeper into the topic, indicating that the debate is far from being exhausted within the Cuban-American community itself.
The U.S. Senate censured Joseph McCarthy on December 2, 1954, formally putting an end to his campaign. The term "McCarthyism" has since become synonymous with political persecution based on unfounded accusations and guilt by association.
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