‘It was all a political stunt’: South Florida Hispanics fume over Martha’s Vineyard controversy

Emotions ranging from outrage to panic and fear were felt by immigrants across South Florida in response to news that Gov. Ron DeSantis had taken responsibility for flying 50 migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard, a resort island near Cape Cod known as a playground for the rich.

“They felt they were finally going to be able to live the American Dream,” said Juan Correa Villalonga, a 34-year-old Sunrise resident who fled Venezuela with his family at age 11. “Little did they know they were being sent to an island of millionaires. They can’t stay there. It was all a political stunt.”

Villalonga knows what it’s like to hope for a new life then be sent back to the country you thought you’d left behind. He was deported in 2009, then later allowed to return to the United States.

“There’s a lot of fear out there,” he said. “When people see this, there’s a great sense of panic in the immigrant communities. But people are outraged. We feel lied to. We’ve sat across the table from DeSantis and he has told us he would support immigrant communities. We feel used and manipulated.”

When the news first broke, some South Floridians were quick to praise the governor on social media. Jim Naugle, former mayor of Fort Lauderdale, referred to him on Twitter as a “brilliant” leader, saying states such as Florida take on more than their fair share of immigrants.

”I think it’s brilliant,” said Naugle, a registered Democrat. “They have great resources up there. I think they’ll love it up in Martha’s Vineyard. It is a huge burden on Florida. I think it’s sticking up for the residents of Florida.”

[ READ IN SPANISH: ‘Todo fue un truco político’: Hispanos del sur de Florida enfurecidos por la controversia de Martha’s Vineyard  ]

Raiza Perrault, a Hollywood resident born in Venezuela, had a different take.

She said of DeSantis: “He chartered two planes to take them to Martha’s Vineyard of all places. Imagine arriving here and then being put on a plane, not being told where they’re going. Who in their right mind would do something like that? It shows no compassion to take people like that and ship them out.”

Evelyn Pérez-Verdía, a Colombian-American political strategist from Weston, had sharp words for the governor, saying he used people who are escaping dictatorships as pawns for his political future.

“It shows why he is so dangerous,” she said. “Because he treats human beings as if they were not human. There is no time to cry. It’s not about crying. It’s about doing something about this. This should embolden our Latino communities to get involved and vote for people who are going to treat them with respect.”

She had high praise for the people of Martha’s Vineyard who came forward to help those in need. “They showed compassion,” she said. “Unfortunately, we are getting less and less of that in Florida, due to the policies of Ron DeSantis.”

[ RELATED: Critics blast DeSantis for flying Texas migrants to Martha’s Vineyard ]

On Thursday, theAmerican Business Immigration Coalition Action condemned DeSantis for sending off two planes full of migrants to Martha’s Vineyard at the start of Hispanic Heritage Month.

“As a bipartisan business coalition, we find Gov. DeSantis’ recent anti-immigrant actions to be morally repulsive,” Samuel Vilchez Santiago, Florida state director for the organization. “As a Venezuelan-American, I’ve seen how, on the campaign trail, Gov. DeSantis panders to communities like mine that have been traumatized by political persecution and violence. Yet, on the official side, his administration continuously throws our communities under the bus in his quest for power. This is a new low and a betrayal to our communities.”

Jose Antonio Colina, president of Miami-based Persecuted Political Venezuelans in Exile, blasted DeSantis for using $12 million for his plan to ship immigrants to taunt leaders of immigrant-friendly “sanctuary” cities.

“Governors should neither use taxpayers’ money for that nor exercise that type of [immigration] function,” he said. “Imagine the people who come fleeing from Venezuela, where nothing works, going through all that journey through the jungle, surviving the 55,000 problems there, and then arriving in the U.S. and being released in a state where they don’t know anyone.”

[ RELATED: Trump tells Venezuela’s exile community: ‘A new day coming in Latin America’ ]

DeSantis knows what is happening in Venezuela, Colina added.

“He knows the situation that Venezuelans are going through, so how does he [send away] many of those Venezuelans who are fleeing from political persecution?”

Venezuelan activist Helene Villalonga, of Sunrise, has organized several workshops to help Venezuelans get Temporary Protected Status after helping her son, Juan Correa Villalonga, return to the U.S.

Villalonga says she has been in communication with several migrants taken to Martha’s Vineyard. According to Villalonga, the majority are Venezuelans and Colombians. Villalonga says that they are in communication with several people through an organization called Venezuelans in Massachusetts.

“We have information that there is a large number of Venezuelans on these charter flights who will be assisted by an organization that will try to give them legal assistance because these people do not have documents.”

Venezuela is still in crisis, she noted. “The reason why these immigrants are finding it necessary to cross the border and violate U.S. laws is because they are experiencing a socioeconomic, political and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela,” she said.

Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com or on Twitter @Susannah_Bryan