Eliéxer Márquez Duany, better known to his fans as El Funky, is staring down the barrel of deportation—even as a vocal supporter of President Donald Trump and a known voice against Cuba’s communist regime.
The Cuban rapper, who fled to the U.S. in 2021 and settled in Miami, revealed earlier this month that his application for permanent residency had been denied. “I have 30 days to leave the country or I will be deported,” he wrote in a May 8 Instagram post. The message, which quickly went viral among Cuban American circles, came with a plea: “I ask all my Cuban brothers who know my anti-communist trajectory and the congressmen of this country that more than ever I need your support today.”
El Funky rose to prominence as a co-creator of Patria y Vida, a fiery anthem that helped fuel Cuba’s largest anti-government protests in decades. The song, which won a Latin Grammy in 2023, became a rallying cry for freedom and helped cement his reputation as a powerful voice in the Cuban opposition movement. U.S. politicians such as Senators Marco Rubio and Mario Díaz-Balart once publicly lauded his activism.
His hopes of remaining in the U.S. were based on the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966—a law that previously made it easier for Cuban migrants to apply for permanent residency. However, changes under the Obama administration in 2017 required Cubans entering without a visa to be treated like migrants from any other country.
Despite the looming threat of deportation, El Funky hasn’t backed down—either in his political views or his belief in the legal process. In a follow-up post on May 22, he shared a new update with fans: “Thanks to my legal team, my residency case has been opened. I have great faith in this government and the legal process… El Funky will not be deported.”
Still, he made clear the stakes if he’s forced to return to Cuba. “I’m not going to shut up,” he told Havana Times. “Going back puts my life in danger.” He also reiterated his support for the current U.S. president: “If I could vote, I would have voted for Trump.”
As his legal fight continues, El Funky finds himself in a strange paradox—praised by American leaders for championing freedom abroad, while facing possible expulsion at home.
