A remote airstrip in Florida’s Everglades is now the site of a massive migrant detention centre, nicknamed Alligator Alcatraz. The facility, surrounded by alligators and swampland, is meant to house up to 1,000 undocumented immigrants as part of former President Donald Trump’s aggressive deportation push. Trucks and tents are already pouring in to set up infrastructure at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, about 70 km from Miami.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier promoted the facility in a rock-music-backed video, saying, “If people get out, there’s not much waiting for them other than alligators and pythons.” Environmentalists and human rights groups, however, see it as a disaster in the making. The critics fear that the Everglades, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, could suffer lasting harm.
🩸 Alligator Alcatraz 🐊 🔐 ⛓️
A 30-square-mile property, in the Everglades, which is currently a “virtually abandoned airport,” will soon be the site of a 5,000-bed facility to hold criminal illegal immigrants 🧊 pic.twitter.com/UxlXCRlXPB— 🇺🇸 🇮🇹 Don’t Dox Me 🐆 🌺 (@VelvettyWords) June 24, 2025
Controversy Grows Around Detention Project
The Alligator Alcatraz site has quickly become a lightning rod for opposition. Miccosukee group member Betty Osceola joined recent protests, warning of long-term environmental destruction. “I have serious concerns about the environmental damage,” she said, while pointing to alligators swimming near the site.
Human rights groups like the ACLU have also condemned the plan. “It’s not just cruel and absurd,” the ACLU of Florida said. “It underscores how our immigration system is increasingly being used to punish people rather than process them.” Concerns include medical neglect, poor legal access, and systemic abuse issues already reported at ICE facilities in urban areas.
State Defends Alligator Alcatraz
Despite the backlash, state and federal officials stand by the Alligator Alcatraz plan. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called it “cost-effective and innovative.” FEMA will fund the project, and Governor Ron DeSantis hinted that more such centres may soon follow. “We’ll probably also do something similar up at Camp Blanding,” he said.
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, whose county owns the airfield, said she raised concerns about funding and environmental risks. Still, construction moves ahead. As immigration raids increase nationwide, many undocumented Latinos in Florida now live in fear of being caught and sent to the swamp-based detention centre, far from civilisation and surrounded by danger.
