Explaining Cuba's Migration Crisis

Alian Collazo

Executive Director

Cuban Freedom March

Alian Collazo is the Executive Director of the Cuban Freedom March, an organization that aims to amplify the voices of Cuban people through their support of freedom and democracy. Collazo arrived with his mother in the United States at the age of eight after fleeing Cuba by boat in 2003. Collazo directs his family’s business, Assisted Living Facility and Adult Day Care in Florida.

Marissa Daniela

Activist, Influencer, and Content Creator

Marissa Daniela is currently one of the biggest content creators for the Cuban diaspora. While she lived in Cuba, alongside her husband, she used platforms such as Instagram and TikTok to document everyday life inside Cuba. Marissa also documented her husband's8-year-immigration journey to the United States, from waiting for the visa in Guyana to his first time on American soil. She will attend the event virtually. Twitter: @mimaincuba

John Suarez

Executive Director

Center for a Free Cuba

John is a human rights activist and the Executive Director of the Center for a Free Cuba. Suarez was a Program Officer for the Latin America Program at Freedom House. He has been interviewed by TV, radio, and print media in Cuba. His expertise includes: communism in Latin America, Cuban history and current events, the impact of the Castro regime in Latin America, and the U.S. foreign policy.

Miguel Inda Romero

Immigration Lawyer

The Law Offices Of Miguel Inda-Romero

Miguel Inda-Romero is an experienced immigration attorney in the South Florida area. He practices in the legal areas of immigration, personal injury, criminal defense, and family law. Miguel uses his knowledge as a lawyer to help migrants who are detained by ICE and do not have the legal or economic resources to have someone represent them in court proceedings. He travels frequently to the United States-Mexico border to meet with migrants and helps them out. Twitter: @abogadosincero

Dr. Hector E. Schamis

Adjunct Professor

Georgetown University - Walsh School of Foreign Service

Hector E. Schamis teaches at Georgetown University’s Center for Latin American Studies and Democracy & Governance Program. Dr. Schamis previously taught at Brown and Cornell universities. He was a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington DC, Cambridge University, and the Central European University in Budapest. He is the author of Re-Forming the State: The Politics of Privatization in Latin America and Europe (University of Michigan Press) and a variety of journal articles and book chapters on authoritarianism, populism, democratization, human rights and press freedom. He also is a weekly columnist for El País (Madrid) and a frequent contributor to Clarín (Buenos Aires), Infobae (Buenos Aires), El Nacional (Caracas), CNN, NTN24 and other media organizations. 

Ang├®lica Franganillo

Graduate Student

Georgetown University

Angélica Franganillo-Diaz is a journalist completing a Master’s in Journalism with a certificate in Latin American Studies at Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. She was born and raised in Puerto Rico, but she is deeply attached to her Cuban roots due to the enrichment of Cuban culture throughout my life.