Marcos Javier Ramos Estrada, a 29-year-old Cuban who was deported from the United States after spending several months in an immigration detention center, is trying to rebuild his life in Havana with a computer repair and support workshop where two other young people who were also returned to the island currently work.
The business operates in the Cerro municipality and provides technical services to small businesses. Behind this initiative is a story of emigration that began with the sale of a family home and ended with a return to Cuba without a house, without savings, and with the need to start over.
His experience was captured in an interview published by CubaNet, in which the young man describes the challenges of his journey to the United States, his detention, and the process of economic recovery after his deportation.
Before emigrating, Marcos lived in the Diez de Octubre municipality. In 2024, he decided to sell the apartment he had inherited from his grandparents to finance the trip. He also let go of his motorcycle, work tools, music equipment, and other belongings.
According to his account, he gathered around $12,000 to embark on a migratory journey that took him through several countries in Central America and Mexico. During the trip, he faced precarious living conditions, unexpected expenses, and situations of extortion.
In Tapachula, Mexico, he waited for almost two months for a document that would allow him to continue his journey. When he finally arrived in the United States, his intention was to settle there permanently.
However, after requesting immigration protection, he remained detained in Texas for several months. According to his testimony, a judge ordered his expulsion, and he was sent back to Cuba.
The return left him in a situation very different from the one in which he had left Havana: the house had been sold, his savings were depleted, and he no longer had the tools he once used to make a living.
During his first weeks back, he stayed at a relative's house. The need to earn income drove him to resume his work as a computer technician, initially using borrowed tools and offering home repair services.
From home repairs to a workshop of our own
Marcos started by addressing IT issues for cafes and small private businesses, particularly network failures, inventory systems, and equipment used to record sales.
His strategy, as he explained, consisted of providing quick and cost-effective solutions to merchants who needed to keep their equipment running. To cut costs, he walked long distances and reused components salvaged from broken devices.
With the income generated and the feedback from his first clients, he was able to rent a space in Cerro and set up his technical support workshop there.
The initiative also allowed him to incorporate two young people who had been deported and who, like him, faced the challenge of finding a source of income after returning to the island.
In the interview, Marcos explained that he decided to offer them a job because he recognized in their circumstances the difficulties he himself had faced.
For the young person, the workshop represents both a way to regain some stability and an opportunity to help others who have returned without resources.
Cubans try to rebuild their lives after returning
The case has a recent precedent in the story of Liexer De La Cruz, a Cuban who returned to Havana from the United States and resumed his work as a taxi driver using a tricycle powered by solar energy.
De La Cruz had worked as an electrician in the United States but ended up returning to Cuba with his wife after facing difficulties related to his immigration status. Once on the island, he resumed an activity he was familiar with before emigrating.
His experience also highlighted the economic obstacles of returning: blackouts, water shortages, and the high cost of food complicated his daily life and, at times, prevented him from working.
Another story is that of a Cuban woman who shared how she had to start from scratch after being deported, in a testimony where she recounted her efforts to move forward through work and the economic challenges she faced upon her return.
Each experience of returning to Cuba is unique, shaped by personal circumstances, losses, and individual challenges. However, experiences like these demonstrate that even after returning to Cuba without the resources they once had, some Cubans are able to rebuild their lives, regain their economic independence, and find new opportunities.
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