The new detention facility for immigrants, colloquially known as “Alligator Alcatraz,” is set to receive its first occupants.
The first group of immigrants was scheduled to arrive Wednesday night at a new detention center deep in the Florida Everglades that officials have dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” the state’s attorney general said.
Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican, has reported that the facility was erected in just eight days, spanning over 10 miles of Everglades terrain. It boasts substantial security measures, including more than 200 cameras, extensive barbed wire fencing, and a security force of 400 personnel.
Environmental organizations and Native American tribes have voiced strong opposition to the center’s establishment. Their concerns range from potential ecological impacts on the delicate Everglades ecosystem to humanitarian issues regarding the detainees’ living conditions, given the area’s climate and insect population. Additionally, tribal representatives assert that the land holds sacred significance.
State officials, including Governor DeSantis, have positioned the facility’s remote location as a deterrent to illegal immigration. The choice of name, referencing the infamous Alcatraz prison, appears to be a deliberate message regarding the center’s intended purpose and conditions.
This represents a notable shift in state-level approaches to immigration enforcement, raising important questions about the balance between deterrence strategies and humanitarian considerations in addressing complex immigration issues.