“They’re casting us aside to die. There’s no help.”
Thousands of Cubans deported from the United States to Mexico are now living in fear, poverty and legal uncertainty, according to a new report released by Human Rights Watch.
The report says many of the deported migrants were sent to Mexico without proper legal hearings, stable support systems or clear immigration status after being removed from the U.S. under policies expanded during President Donald Trump’s administration.
Human Rights Watch said nearly 13,000 third country nationals, including more than 4,000 Cubans, were deported to Mexico between early 2025 and March 2026. Many reportedly had lived in the United States for years or even decades before suddenly being removed.
Some deportees described arriving in unfamiliar Mexican cities with little money, no housing and no way to legally work.
“How are we supposed to eat or pay rent?” one deported Cuban told researchers in the report.
The report says many Cubans now find themselves trapped in what rights groups describe as “legal limbo” because Cuba often refuses to accept deportees back, leaving them unable to return home while also struggling to build stable lives in Mexico.
Several migrants interviewed by Human Rights Watch said they were left vulnerable to crime, exploitation and homelessness after arriving in southern Mexican cities including Villahermosa and Tapachula.
One older deportee said the situation has become especially difficult for elderly migrants with health conditions.
“Some people cannot even get basic medicine,” a migrant told researchers.
The report also accused U.S. authorities of failing to carry out proper screenings before deportations, arguing that many migrants were not given meaningful opportunities to explain fears about being sent to Mexico.
The Trump administration has defended its broader immigration crackdown, arguing that stronger deportation policies are necessary to control illegal immigration and strengthen border security.
But critics say the policy has expanded beyond recent border crossers and is now affecting longtime residents who had built families and lives in the United States.
“These are not people who just arrived yesterday,” one immigration attorney said. “Some lived in America for decades.”
The issue has also placed pressure on Mexico, which continues receiving migrants from countries beyond Latin America through deportation agreements with Washington.
Human Rights Watch is now calling on both governments to make the deportation agreements public and create clearer legal protections for migrants being transferred to Mexico.
For many deported Cubans, though, the larger concern is immediate survival.
Some are sleeping in overcrowded shelters. Others are relying on churches, volunteers or informal jobs just to get through the day. Many say they still do not know what their future looks like.
And after years spent trying to build stable lives in the United States, many now find themselves stranded in a country they never expected would become their new reality.
