Florida’s new detention facility is a human rights disaster

In July 2025, the Everglades Detention Facility nicknamed “Alligator Alcatraz”opened deep in a remote part of Florida. It was created as part of the Trump administration’s massive expansion of immigration detention and deportation. The facility can hold around 3,000 people and is run by the state of Florida, with the expectation of being paid back by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

This facility reflects a harsh and racist approach to immigration. Even before it opened, President Trump made cruel remarks suggesting people held there would need to “run away from an alligator.” Florida politicians joined in, calling it a “gator-guarded prison.” These statements and the facility itself are meant to scare, dehumanize, and punish people simply for seeking safety.

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Photo credit: Alli McCracken/Amnesty International

Horrific conditions and abuse

Just days after opening, reports of inhumane treatment began to surface. People detained at “Alligator Alcatraz” are experiencing:

• Overcrowded and filthy conditions, including overflowing toilets and no clean water
• A complete lack of medical care, even for those with serious health needs
• No access to lawyers or legal information to help them fight their detention
• Deep psychological distress caused by isolation and fear

These conditions are unacceptable. The U.S. is already holding nearly 57,000 people in immigration detention, many in similar or worse situations. This system is not about safety. It is about punishment and control.

This should never have happened

President Trump’s new law, H.R.1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill”, is pouring $170 billion into detention and deportation over the next four years. Instead of using resources to support fair immigration processes, the government is using them to create more suffering.

Detaining people just because of their immigration status is a violation of their rights. Under international law, detention should only be used in rare, justified cases, not to terrorize communities. It must be humane and meet minimum standards. The Everglades facility fails on every front.

© Amnesty International (photo: HANS-MAXIMO MUSIELIK)

You can write a letter in your own words urging the Governor of the State of Florida to:

- Shut down the Everglades Detention Facility immediately 

- Ensure that Florida is not complicit in human rights abuses linked to immigration detention.

Write to:

Governor of Florida Ron DeSantis

State of Florida

The Capitol

400 S. Monroe St.

Tallahassee, FL 32399, USA

Email: [email protected]

Salutation: Dear Governor DeSantis

And copy:

His Excellency Peter Hoekstra

Ambassador

Embassy of the United States of America

490 Sussex Drive

Ottawa, ON K1N 1G8

Tel: (613) 238-5335 / 688-5335 (24h) Fax: (613) 688-3082

A Call for Action

The Everglades Detention Facility must be shut down immediately. Migrants and asylum seekers held inside should be released and allowed to navigate their immigration cases with legal support, not locked up in swamps. Florida must end its partnership with ICE and stop being a testing ground for cruelty.

For more, visit the Urgent Action page.