1980 – Cuba Allows 125,000 Cubans to Illegally Depart for the United States

“In 1980… the Cuban government allowed 125,000 Cubans to illegally
depart for the United States from the port of Mariel, an incident known
as the ‘Mariel boatlift.’ In 1984, the United States and Cuba negotiated
an agreement to resume normal immigration, and to return to Cuba those
persons who had arrived during the boatlift who were ‘excludable’ under
U.S. law.”