This Saturday, a group of congress members and state legislators from Florida visited for the first time the immigration detention center known as Alligator Alcatraz, located in an abandoned airport in the midst of the Everglades.
What they saw - and what they were not allowed to see - left them shocked.
The reported conditions within the center, already nicknamed by many as "internment camp", sparked a strong condemnation from Democrats, who described it as a cruel, unhealthy, and dangerous political setup.
A "farce" among mosquitoes, heat, and infested mattresses
During the guided tour, the legislators were led by Kevin Guthrie, the director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM), the agency in charge of the center.
In another post, Smith specified that they will continue to demand full access to Alligator Alcatraz.
The inspection was described by several participants as "limited" or "sanitized," as they were not allowed to speak with detainees or staff.
One of the outraged was Democratic Senator Carlos Smith, who called for the immediate closure of the center.
"It was an incredibly dystopian experience,” said state representative Anna Eskamani (Orlando), who also criticized the “lack of clarity regarding which rules and procedures are actually being followed” concerning the rights and status of detainees, as reported by Florida Phoenix.
The congress members saw insects in the mattresses, showers, and toilets without privacy, temperatures ranging between 83 and 85 degrees in supposedly air-conditioned areas, and portions of food that were "small and inadequate."
The representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25) was emphatic: “There are truly disturbing and vile conditions, and this place needs to be shut down immediately,” she said in statements reported by the EFE agency.
Later, he published on his official X account:
"Today I visited the Everglades detention center. Even during a limited and sanitized visit, it became clear: this is an internment camp. Our taxpayers' money is being wasted to cruelly cage human beings."
Extreme overcrowding and degrading conditions
The Democrats agreed that 32 men are confined in a cage, sleeping on basic bunk beds and sharing three toilets with integrated sinks.
Privacy is virtually nonexistent.
"They get water for drinking and washing their teeth where they defecate, in the same unit," denounced Wasserman Schultz.
“750 humans in cages. We were not allowed to speak with the detainees. We did not walk through the occupied areas. There are immigrants with no criminal records,” said State Senator Carlos Guillermo Smith.
Legislators like Maxwell Alejandro Frost (FL-10) reported hearing the detainees shouting from the tents: "One shouted 'I am a U.S. citizen!' and others chanted 'Freedom!'"
Frost also reported collapsed bathrooms and "feces scattered everywhere."
“It is something that everyone, whether they are Democrats, Republicans, or whatever, should feel deeply ashamed of. Immigrants do not poison the blood of this nation. They are the blood of this nation”, he concluded.
The legislator Darren Soto (FL-9) criticized the expenditure of 500 million dollars and warned about the risk of flooding.
"What we saw today was a political stunt, dangerous and wasteful," he said.
He added that the facility endangers not only migrants but also federal agents and the National Guard deployed there.
A million-dollar and risky project
The center was built in just eight days on an abandoned runway of the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier reported that hundreds of people began to arrive on July 2.
From the government, the reactions have been defensive. State Senator Blaise Ingoglia, an ally of DeSantis, wrote on X: “I lay down on one of the beds, and it was really comfortable. So any complaints about the misery are nothing but pure rhetoric and political theater.”
Jay Collins, another Republican senator, also stated that the center was "clean and operating well."
He added, “Would I like to have that toilet and sink in the bathroom of my house? Probably not, but this is a temporary detention center.”
The name Alligator Alcatraz, initially used mockingly by Republicans, has been ironically adopted by critics as a symbol of abuse.
Institutional debate and future projections
The Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, defended the conditions during a conference in Tampa: "All existing issues have been addressed," she said.
He described it as "a fantastic resource" and revealed that five Republican governors have expressed interest in replicating the model, although he avoided naming them.
The Democratic representative Jared Moskowitz, former director of the FDEM, was more nuanced: “It's as bad as it can be, but it's not a concentration camp. People should not use references to the Holocaust to describe what's happening.”
The Archdiocese of Miami, for its part, described the center as "corrosive" and "inappropriate", joining the voices calling for its immediate closure.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Alligator Alcatraz Detention Center in Florida
What did the Democratic congress members find during their visit to Alligator Alcatraz?
Democratic lawmakers found deplorable conditions in Alligator Alcatraz, with insects on mattresses, showers and toilets lacking privacy, and high temperatures in air-conditioned areas. Moreover, they were prevented from speaking with the detainees and observing the occupied areas, which sparked outrage and criticism regarding the management of the facility.
Why is the use of Alligator Alcatraz as a detention center criticized?
The Alligator Alcatraz center is criticized for being labeled as a cruel, unhealthy, and dangerous political setup. The conditions are inhumane, with extreme overcrowding, lack of privacy, and inadequate food. Furthermore, it is seen as a wasteful use of public funds and poses an environmental risk in a flood-prone area.
What impact does the detention center have on the Everglades ecosystem?
The environmental impact of the Alligator Alcatraz detention center in the Everglades is concerning, as it is built in an ecologically sensitive area. Construction in wetlands could harm the biodiversity of the region, which includes endangered species such as the Florida panther, and has been the subject of lawsuits from environmental groups.
What percentage of detainees in Alligator Alcatraz have no criminal record?
At least one-third of those detained in Alligator Alcatraz, which amounts to more than 250 people, have no criminal records or pending charges in the United States. Many of them are only facing administrative violations related to their immigration status.
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