TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, Sierra Club Florida issued the following statement regarding reports of the potential closure of the Everglades Detention Center:
“The news that the detention center in the Everglades, callously nicknamed ‘Alligator Alcatraz,’ may soon close is a welcome development. But even with this news, we cannot ignore the lasting damage caused by this inhumane and reckless project.
Sierra Club Florida demands transparency about the impacts to the Everglades and surrounding protected lands, including the harm caused by the construction, operation, and eventual dismantling of this facility. The Everglades – one of the world’s most fragile ecosystems and a vital habitat to countless protected and endangered species – should never have been subjected to this abuse. Our parks and preserves must remain places of belonging, reflection, and natural wonder, not prison camps.
This ugly episode in the history of our state is a forceful example of how the systems that exploit land and pollute water also target Black, Brown, Indigenous, and immigrant communities first and worst. Sierra Club Florida stands in solidarity with those communities and challenges injustice in all its forms, including the encroachment on the sovereignty of the Miccosukee Tribe over its cultural territory.
Serious questions remain regarding the millions of emergency fund dollars tied to this project. Funds reserved for Floridians facing the consequences of natural disasters or other crises should not be used to play political games. Adding insult to injury, assurances from Governor DeSantis and Attorney General Uthmeier that the federal government would reimburse the state now appear deeply misleading.
Most importantly, we cannot forget the untold number of people who were detained under inhumane conditions and denied due process. Leaving families uninformed as to their loved ones’ location or welfare for days, let alone weeks, was and always will be unconscionable.
While this facility may close, similar detention centers already exist across the country, with more being proposed every day. Governing through cruelty is not strength. It is a stain on the fabric of our nation that future generations will look back on not with pride, but with regret and disgust.” –Javier Estevez, Political and Legislative Director, Sierra Club Florida
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