The Alligator Alcatraz detention center, located in the middle of the Everglades wetlands (Florida), received its first migrants this week, amid a wave of protests over the inhumane conditions of the place. The facility, erected in just eight days under emergency orders from Governor Ron DeSantis, is part of the new federal mass deportation plan promoted by the administration of President Donald Trump.
The arrival of the first group was confirmed by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier through the social network X on Wednesday night. Immediately, civil and human rights organizations denounced that the place does not guarantee access to justice, humanitarian protection or minimum conditions of dignity.
Migrants detained in critical conditions
Alligator Alcatraz is located in a remote area of South Florida, within the Dade-Collier Airport, surrounded by swamps and wildlife such as alligators and pythons.
The center, built with makeshift tents and trailers, can accommodate up to 5,000 people.
However, water leaks have already been documented at the Alligator Alcatraz facility following a storm, raising concerns about its ability to withstand hurricane season.
Photographs circulated on social networks show large puddles inside the tents, just hours after a visit by President Trump to the site.
Organizations such as Human Rights Watch and the American Immigration Council warned that detained migrants do not have clear access to lawyers.
There is no contact with their families and no guarantee that their treatment will be monitored.
Legal and environmental protests
A total of more than 60 civil rights, environmental and indigenous organizations have demanded the immediate closure of Alligator Alcatraz, calling it a threat to human life and the ecosystem.
The site is located in a sensitive ecological zone and was not subjected to a full environmental assessment prior to construction.
Friends of the Everglades and the Center for Biological Diversity have already filed lawsuits against the state of Florida.
In addition, native communities have denounced that the center was built on land considered sacred, without prior consultation.
Media controversy and institutional mockery
During his visit to the center, President Trump joked about the alligators as possible natural guardians of the site.
He shared on social networks images of official merchandise with the Alligator Alcatraz logo, including T-shirts and mugs with drawings of alligators and pythons.
El centro tiene capacidad para albergar hasta 5,000 personas
These actions have been described by activists as a cruel mockery of a humanitarian crisis affecting thousands of migrants, many of them Hispanic.
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