Why is Florida putting a migrant center in the Everglades?
Asked 15 hours ago
Answer
Florida is placing a migrant detention center in the Everglades, called 'Alligator Alcatraz,' as part of an effort to increase immigration enforcement and deterrence. The remote and challenging location is intended to serve as a natural barrier, making escape difficult and sending a strong message to deter illegal immigration. The facility is state-run, with Florida officials overseeing detainees, and has sparked controversy due to environmental, humanitarian, and indigenous land concerns.
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The migrant center is built on an airport in the Florida Everglades, a region known for its treacherous terrain and wildlife, to serve as a secure and remote detention facility. The location is intended to act as a deterrent, with the surrounding swampland and wildlife serving as natural barriers to escape.
Governor DeSantis claims the center is both temporary and necessary, equipped with basic amenities, and is located in the Everglades to address the need for more detention space. However, protesters argue it is environmentally destructive and inhumane.
Florida officials offered an abandoned airfield in the Everglades to be converted into a massive immigration detention center, dubbed 'Alligator Alcatraz,' because the natural environment would make escape extremely difficult. The administration wants to send a message of deterrence: if you come illegally, you could end up detained in the Everglades.