The family of a Minnesota actor has found itself in the middle of the Trump Administration’s immigration crackdown.
On Aug. 15, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained Adalberto Borroto, a Cuban immigrant who was on his way from Florida to see his son, Berto Borroto, in his Guthrie Theater debut in “Cabaret.”
Berto wrote about the incident on the same day in a social media post. “My family is in complete shock, and are desperately working to find a way to fight this,” he wrote.
Adalberto had visited Minneapolis months prior to see Berto in “Fun Home” at Theater Latté Da. According to Berto, any time his father travels out of Florida for more than 48 hours, he must alert ICE.
“He’s done that for years,” Berto said. “He's been to every show that I've done.”
Those check-ins were required by an order of supervision that went into effect in 2008.
When Adalberto went to get permission again to come see “Cabaret,” he learned he had been marked for deportation since last year.
“Even though he had been here three months ago,” Berto said. “It was terrifying.”
Adalberto was transferred to the Florida detention facility dubbed Alligator Alcatraz, and in an Aug. 19 social media post, Berto wrote that his dad said “conditions are really bad.”
A senior official at the Department of Homeland Security confirmed that Adalberto was arrested on Aug. 15 and detained but denied poor conditions.
“Any allegations of inhumane conditions are FALSE,” the unnamed official stated in an email. “The media is peddling a FALSE sob story of a CONVICTED DRUG TRAFFICKER.”
DHS said the grounds for detaining Adalberto were “convictions for trafficking cocaine and possession of cocaine,” and an immigration judge ordered him to be removed from the country in 1992.
Orange County Florida criminal records show that Adalberto was arrested for selling cocaine to an undercover police officer and convicted of trafficking cocaine 1989.
Berto said he and his family are very aware of his father’s past but don’t believe it should be the sum of his story.
“He made sure that he raised a son who knew that his actions had consequences,” Berto said. “He turned his life around, and he’s proof that people can change.”
He said he knows his father, Adalberto, is proud of the family and life he built.
“I'm his American dream,” Berto said. “And as long as I’m here and doing what I need to do to be an exemplary American citizen, he’s going to be happy.”
Berto Borroto spoke with MPR News host Cathy Wurzer about his father’s detainment and the impact on his family. A transcript of the interview, edited lightly for clarity, is below. Click the player above to listen to the full conversation.
Have you had a chance to talk to your dad? How’s he doing?
I've had an opportunity to talk with my dad a few times over the phone, and luckily, he has been transferred recently over to another detention center in New Mexico where he has access to video calls.
Yesterday was a very emotional day as my family sat down around our kitchen table and FaceTimed him and got to see him for the first time in almost two weeks.
What was your reaction when you heard the news of your father’s detainment?
My dad had come to see me over at “Fun Home.” I was in “Fun Home” at Theater Latté Da. And about three months before he got taken into custody, every time he travels out of state for more than 48 hours, he would have to go get permission from ICE. And he's done that for years.
He’s been to every show that I’ve done, and that just three months ago, he was at the ICE place, he got permission, he came over to see me, and when he went back this time, he learned he had been marked for deportation since last year.
That was the reasoning we were given, even though he had been here three months ago. It was terrifying. It was something that we all knew in the back of our head could happen. But you know, we live in hopeful times, and we try to live our life, continue to move on and hope that these terrifying things and these life-altering moments don’t happen to us.
But life goes on and sometimes things happen anyways, without our control.
You’re an actor, you’ve appeared on national television. Do you think that led to your dad being a target of ICE?
I would hope not. I really would hope not, because I do think that I’m an example that immigrants can come to this country and have a new opportunity to do something incredible.
And I really do believe that I am like my dad’s wildest dream. I am so successful. I’m the first person in our family to get a college degree, and every single day I go out there and I perform. I perform on some of the most amazing stages in Minneapolis — as an actor at the Guthrie, Latté Da, Park Square, all those places.
As a drag queen, I perform at First Avenue, one of the most incredible stages in the country and nationally for drag brunches. And I bring joy to so many people with the art and the stuff that I do that, I just feel like— could I have, you know, made that target bigger? I don’t want to believe that, because I think all I've done is just showcase that immigrants are just equal as anybody else.
They come here, they try to start a life. They have their kids, and we fight our entire lives and work sometimes three times harder than what we qualify as a “normal American citizen” — to fight for those same opportunities and to make our families and our communities just as proud. So I would hope not.
DHS is calling your dad a convicted drug trafficker. What's your response to that?
I understand that that’s a part of my dad's story. The charge was from over 30 years ago, before he ever met my mom, before he ever had me, before he started his family. And listen, growing up, this is a story I heard all the time, because my father made this mistake, and he made sure that he raised a son who knew that his actions had consequences.
But that being said, he came here at a time — didn’t have support, didn’t speak the language and felt like he was at a place that wasn’t really meant for him to succeed anyway. He got involved with the wrong people. It doesn’t make it easy, and I’m not saying that it’s right. It’s absolutely not, but I think a lot of us could understand and maybe relate to a time where we’ve been desperate for money or whatever it is that we need to make ourselves succeed, and we’ve made a decision that’s easy and not necessarily right.
And our family isn’t proud of the action that he did back then, but most proud of what he did afterward. He started his own business. He was a tile man for over 30 years. He started his family. He raised me and my two sisters who came from my mom’s previous marriage.
He’s paid his taxes. He’s done all of the things he needs to do. He’s been there for me at every step now. He teaches my 7-year-old nephews how to play baseball. He’s an amazing man. He turned his life around, and he’s proof that people can change, can grow, and that they can find what they want here.
I also believe we should always be judged by the full picture of our lives. We don’t just want to always be known for our worst moment and our worst chapter in our lives and his second chance, I feel like, allowed him to achieve his American Dream. Which isn’t his house, it isn’t the white fence he had around his house, it isn’t the money in his bank account, it’s me. I’m his American dream.
As long as I’m here and doing what I need to do to be an exemplary American citizen, he’s going to be happy. And it just breaks my heart that right now the government is trying to rip him away from his American dream.
Are you worried about your dad being deported to a completely different country?
There’s no way he’s going back to Cuba. He wouldn’t be accepted there either.
It’s always a worry at the front of our minds. I think right now, we’re trying to put all of our faith in our legal team as well as making sure we get the right amount of paperwork. We’re hoping that we can get a pardon for him for that mistake that he made 33 years ago.
And we’re just hopeful that we can find a way through this, but, yeah, it’s a fear that he could be deported elsewhere, to another country.
