As of Thursday, August 21, the Florida government has been directed by court order to close the infamous Alligator Alcatraz within the next 60 days.
Opened in July of this year, Alligator Alcatraz is a mass deportation center located deep in the Florida Everglades that has been subject to much controversy.
Environmental groups and the Miccosukee Tribe filed a lawsuit demanding that further construction and operations of the facility be stopped due to their violation of federal environmental laws, arguing that the facility threatened protected wetlands in the Everglades.
Further lawsuits have been filed against the facility for their treatment of its detainees. Stating that worms were found in occupant’s food, toilets didn’t flush, in turn flooding floors with fecal matter, insects were found everywhere, and the air-conditioning was poorly run.
Another lawsuit claimed that immigrants were being held in the facility without charge, they had disappeared from ICE’s online locator, no one at the facility was making custody or bond determinations, and they were denied access to the legal system, clearly violating their constitutional rights.
Florida officials requested a pause in the order, but Judge Kathleen M. Williams denied the request, so they appealed the decision, stating that the space that the facility provides is desperately needed due to the overcrowding of other facilities.
Additionally, it has been found that Florida has signed at least 4.5 million in vendor contracts to build and operate the facility.
Already, the state has allocated at least $245 million to run the site, which opened July 1.
“I think that it’s super unethical what they’re doing to immagrints. I saw how tight those cages they stayed in were,” said Senior Yotam Yutell. He went on to talk about the unethical treatment of immigrants in Alligator Alcatraz. “It’s just not right”.
While there are some students at Coral Springs Charter, such as Yutell, who are aware of the closing of the detention center, much of the student body is unaware of its closing.
Cases such as this are a true testament to the importance of staying informed, due to the fact that it is because of informed people who never stop asking questions and who always fight for what is right, that Alligator Alcatraz is closing.