Native leaders blast construction of Florida's 'Alligator Alcatraz' on
land they call sacred
[June 27, 2025]
By KATE PAYNE
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis'
administration is racing ahead with construction of a makeshift
immigration detention facility at an airstrip in the Everglades over the
opposition of Native American leaders who consider the area their sacred
ancestral homelands.
A string of portable generators and dump trucks loaded with fill dirt
streamed into the site on Thursday, according to activist Jessica
Namath, who witnessed the activity. The state is plowing ahead with
building a compound of heavy-duty tents, trailers and other temporary
buildings at the Miami Dade County-owned airfield located in the Big
Cypress National Preserve, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) west of
downtown Miami.
A spokesperson for the Florida Division of Emergency Management, which
is helping lead the project, did not respond to requests for comment.
State officials have characterized the site as an ideal place to hold
migrants, saying there’s “not much” there other than pythons and
alligators.
Indigenous leaders dispute that and are condemning the state’s plans to
build what's been dubbed “ Alligator Alcatraz ” on their homelands.
Native Americans can trace their roots to the area back thousands of
years.
For generations, the sweeping wetlands of what is now South Florida have
been home to Native peoples who today make up the Miccosukee Tribe of
Indians of Florida and the Seminole Tribe of Florida, as well as the
Seminole Nation of Oklahoma.
“Rather than Miccosukee homelands being an uninhabited wasteland for
alligators and pythons, as some have suggested, the Big Cypress is the
Tribe’s traditional homelands. The landscape has protected the
Miccosukee and Seminole people for generations,” Miccosukee Chairman
Talbert Cypress wrote in a statement on social media.
There are 15 remaining traditional Miccosukee and Seminole villages in
Big Cypress, as well as ceremonial and burial grounds and other
gathering sites, Cypress testified before Congress in 2024.
“We live here. Our ancestors fought and died here. They are buried
here,” he said. “The Big Cypress is part of us, and we are a part of
it.”
Garrett Stuart, who lives about 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) from the site,
described the crystal clear waters, open prairies and lush tree islands
of Big Cypress as teeming with life.
“Hearing the arguments of the frogs in the water, you know? And listen
to the grunt of the alligator. You’re hearing the call of that osprey
flying by and listening to the crows chatting,” he said. “It’s all just
incredible.”
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This image grab from video shows activity at an immigration
detention facility dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz” located at an
isolated Everglades airfield. (WSVN via AP)
Critics have condemned the detention facility and what they call the
state's apparent reliance on alligators as a security measure as a
cruel spectacle, while DeSantis and other state officials have
defended it as part of Florida's muscular efforts to carry out
President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.
“To have alligators and pythons be the security guards, only someone
who’s never spent time in the swamp would ever say something like
that,” Stuart said. “They’re afraid of human beings.”
The Florida National Guard is preparing to send up to 100 soldiers
to the facility on July 1 to provide site security and staff
augmentation, and other support “as directed.”
“We don’t have a set timeline for this mission due to the fluid
nature of the situation, but we will stay on the ground for as long
as we’re needed and at the direction of Governor DeSantis,” Guard
spokesperson Brittianie Funderburk said in a statement.
Tribal leaders and environmentalists are urging the state to change
course, noting billions of dollars in state and federal funds have
been poured into Everglades restoration in recent years, an
investment they say is jeopardized by plans to house some 1,000
migrants at the site for an undetermined amount of time.
Indigenous leaders and activists are planning to gather at the site
again on Saturday to stage a demonstration highlighting why the area
is “sacred” and should be “protected, not destroyed.”
“This place became our refuge in time of war. It provides us a place
to continue our culture and traditions,” Miccosukee leader Betty
Osceola wrote in a social media post announcing the demonstration.
“And we need to protect it for our future generations,” she added.
___ Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for
America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a
nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local
newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
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