An alleged uprising at Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” immigration jail has been reported by Univision, with detainees claiming that guards used tear gas and batons to suppress a minor rebellion. The accusations emerged from at least three detainees. This incident comes as officials are in a hurry to empty the remote tented facility located in the Everglades wetlands, as per a judge’s order to close the camp.
The turmoil is said to have started after one migrant received word that a family member had died. The tragic news prompted several detainees to start yelling for “freedom.” According to The Guardian, in response, a team of guards reportedly rushed into the area and began striking individuals indiscriminately with batons before deploying tear gas.
According to one inmate, “They’ve beaten everyone here, a lot of people have bled. Brother, teargas. We are immigrants, we are not criminals, we are not murderers.” The detainees also described a continuous fire alarm and a helicopter circling above the facility during the event. The details of when the incident is said to have occurred were not immediately clear, and the claims could not be independently verified.
ICE is denying an uprising, but inmates are detailing abusive retaliation
The facility, where migrants are kept in what are described as metal cages while they wait for deportation, has been the subject of frequent reports detailing “inhumane” living conditions and brutality. As a former Correctional Officer, I can say that I don’t think this was made up. Riots (just like escape attempts) happen a lot more often than the public knows, and only the really big ones get reported on. ICE is likely just trying to make an uprising seem like a small disturbance, which is something that’s done often.
The camp’s opening was celebrated by President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who toured the location together and praised its strict environment. They were very happy with the makeshift prisons they made.
The reports of an uprising were officially denied by the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM), which manages the jail on behalf of federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The department’s director of communications stated, “These reports are manufactured. There is no uprising happening at Alligator Alcatraz. Detainees are given clean, safe living conditions, and guards are properly trained on all state and federal protocols.”
A federal judge in Miami, Kathleen Williams, had previously mandated that the facility be closed within 60 days, ruling that it violated environmental laws. The judge recently denied a motion filed by attorneys for Florida and the Trump administration to delay her order. Following this decision, Governor DeSantis told reporters that authorities were “increasing the pace of the removals” from the facility.
An internal memo from Kevin Guthrie, the executive director of the FDEM, was reported to reveal that the number of detainees was expected to drop to zero within a few days. Individuals protesting at the jail’s entrance since its opening on July 2 said they were not aware of any uprising, but have a history of documenting other reported abuses at the location.
Noelle Damico, director of social justice at the Workers Circle said, “People held inside the facility were on hunger strike for more than 14 days, despite the DeSantis administration denying it. What they apparently did was ship people who were hunger striking out to other facilities, Krome [in Miami], to Texas etc, to break it up.” The director expressed that an uprising would not be surprising given the history of alleged abuses that people have experienced at the camp.
