Trump’s latest move to deter migrants? ‘Alligator Alcatraz’

Donald Trump will attend the opening of ‘Alligator Alcatraz’, an immigration detention centre deep in the Florida Everglades.

Demonstrators protest against the construction of ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ ahead of a visit by Donald Trump. Picture: AFP

President Donald Trump will attend the opening of “Alligator Alcatraz”, an immigration detention centre deep in the Florida Everglades, despite protests from Native Americans and environmental activists.

Surrounded by swamp, a remote airbase about 70km outside Miami has undergone massive construction work in the sweltering heat of summer, and become a symbol of Mr Trump’s plans to aggressively round up and deport migrants.

Nicknamed “Alligator Alcatraz”, a reference to the former maximum-security prison in the San Francisco Bay, the Florida location was chosen because of the predatory wildlife that deters detainees from escaping – including snapping turtles, venomous cottonmouth snakes and alligators.

“You don’t need to invest that much in the perimeter,” said James Uthmeier, Florida’s Republican Attorney-General. “People get out, there’s not much waiting for them – except alligators and pythons.”

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said the facility was “surrounded by dangerous wildlife and unforgiving terrain”.

“There is only one road leading in, and the only way out is a one-way flight,” she said. “This is an efficient and low-cost way to help carry out the largest mass deportation campaign in American history.”

The Everglades, a delicate ecosystem of subtropical wetlands, is home to 200,000 alligators. It is also the only place in the US with a population of American crocodiles, the most famous of which is a 4m specimen nicknamed “Croczilla”. Since the 1970s, Burmese pythons, an invasive species, have lurked in the national park’s humid forests despite the efforts of bounty hunters to control the population.

In summer, the temperatures often climb into the high thirties and anyone wishing to escape the facility would have to contend with mosquitoes, lightning and frequent hurricanes – as well as the alligators.

Before Mr Trump’s visit on Wednesday (AEST), protesters lined the highway that bisects the Everglades National Park to demonstrate against the construction trucks transforming the site into an immigration detention centre.

Tents and trailers will provide beds for 5000 migrants by early July, according to estimates provided by the state. The White House has agreed to meet the running costs, estimated to be about $US450m ($684m) a year, through the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The Republican Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, used emergency powers to seize the Dade-Collier Training and Transition airport in 2023 despite local opposition.

The facility is next to the Tamiami Trail, home to 19 traditional villages of the Miccosukee and Seminole tribes, as well as burial grounds and ceremonial sites.

Native American leaders have accused officials of desecrating their homelands and likened Mr Trump’s immigration policies to the 19th-century treatment of their ancestors.

“The state would save substantial taxpayer dollars by pursuing its goals at a different location with more existing infrastructure and less environmental and cultural impacts,” Talbert Cypress, chairman of the Miccosukee tribe, said.

Joining the opposition, environmental groups have filed a federal lawsuit against the project on the basis that the building work could damage an important habitat for endangered species, including the Florida panther and the West Indian manatee.

But Mr DeSantis, who lost out to Mr Trump in the battle for the Republican presidential nomination and supported him afterwards, has enthusiastically backed the project. He also suggested Florida could open up another detention centre at Camp Blanding, a US Army base more than 500km north, to supplement the beds at “Alligator Alcatraz”.

“Clearly, from a security perspective, if someone escapes, you know, there’s a lot of alligators,” Mr DeSantis said. “No one’s going anywhere.”

As part of Mr Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers have been set a target of arresting 3000 people a day. The aggressive tactics have resulted in violent clashes with protesters, most notably in Los Angeles in June, when Mr Trump deployed US marines and soldiers to quell the unrest.

The raids have resulted in 57,000 people being held in detention across the US, exceeding the total beds capacity of 41,500, according to internal documents seen by CBS.

Kristi Noem, the Homeland Security Secretary, has praised Florida for proposing the Everglades as a site to house migrants and the Trump administration has appeared to revel in the controversy.

The Department for Homeland Security recently shared an AI-generated image of alligators wearing ICE baseball caps patrolling the detention centre with the caption “Coming soon!”

The Republican Party has also begun selling “Alligator Alcatraz” merchandise, including T-shirts, hats and drinks coolers.

THE TIMES