Understanding Alligator Alcatraz's impact today

The seven articles below about Alligator Alcatraz focus on conditions, motivations, and controversies surrounding the Everglades detention facility.

Catch up with the coverage below.

Ochopee, Fla., June 22, 2025 - Frame grab from video of the construction of ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ at Dade Collier Training and Transition Airport off Tamiami Trail . MUST CREDIT: Courtesy NBC 6 / TELEMUNDO 51

NO. 1: HOW DESANTIS LEANED ON EMERGENCY POWERS TO BUILD ‘ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ’ IN DAYS

Florida’s governor is seizing land, scrambling contractors and tapping the National Guard, all thanks to a years-old order declaring a state of emergency over illegal immigration. | Published June 28, 2025 | Read Full Story by Ana Ceballos Romy Ellenbogen Alex Harris

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US President President Donald Trump (2L), alongside Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (L), tour a migrant detention center, dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” located at the site of the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in Ochopee, Florida on July 1, 2025. President Trump is visiting a migrant detention center in a reptile-infested Florida swamp dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz.” Trump will attend the opening of the 5,000-bed facility -- located at an abandoned airfield in the Everglades wetlands -- part of his expansion of deportations of undocumented migrants, his spokeswoman said. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP) (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

NO. 2: AT ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ, CONTRASTING IMMIGRATION VISIONS CLASH AS EVERGLADES FACILITY OPENS

During an hours-long visit on Tuesday, President Donald Trump and top state and federal officials celebrated the opening of the new Florida-run immigration detention center in the Everglades as a major milestone in a joint mass deportation campaign.Trump depicted the new facility as a harsh solution to deter undocumented immigrants from coming into the United States, and said it will soon house “some of the most vicious people on the planet.” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem urged undocumented immigrants to self deport to avoid being jailed there. | Published July 1, 2025 | Read Full Story by Milena Malaver Churchill Ndonwie Ana Ceballos Syra Ortiz Blanes Alex Harris

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Un niño refugiado del Mariel montado en un triciclo recorre la “ciudad de las carpas”, con downtown Miami en el fondo.

NO. 3: MIAMI-DADE’S IMMIGRANT PAST: FROM THE MARIEL TENT CITY TO ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ | OPINION

A new detention center in the Everglades revives old fears — but without the compassion that once defined Miami’s response to refugees. | Opinion | Published July 1, 2025 | Read Full Story by the Miami Herald Editorial Board

US President President Donald Trump (2L), alongside Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (L), tour a migrant detention center, dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” located at the site of the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in Ochopee, Florida on July 1, 2025. President Trump is visiting a migrant detention center in a reptile-infested Florida swamp dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz.” Trump will attend the opening of the 5,000-bed facility -- located at an abandoned airfield in the Everglades wetlands -- part of his expansion of deportations of undocumented migrants, his spokeswoman said. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP) (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

NO. 4: MERCH, JOKES AND MEMES: TRUMP OFFICIALS, SUPPORTERS LOVE THE NAME ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ

“Alligator Alcatraz,” the immigrant detention facility that opened Tuesday in the Florida Everglades, has become a rich source of jokes, memes and even merchandise put out by officials aligned with the Trump administration — and the president’s supporters.President Donald Trump, visiting the facility with Gov. | Published July 1, 2025 | Read Full Story by Grethel Aguila

Beds are seen inside a migrant detention center, dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” located at the site of the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, as US President Donald Trump tours the facility in Ochopee, Florida on July 1, 2025. President Trump is visiting a migrant detention center in a reptile-infested Florida swamp dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz.” Trump will attend the opening of the 5,000-bed facility -- located at an abandoned airfield in the Everglades wetlands -- part of his expansion of deportations of undocumented migrants, his spokeswoman said. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP) (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

NO. 5: BUNK BEDS AND 28,000 FEET OF RAZOR WIRE. LOOK INSIDE FLORIDA’S ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ

See video – and what federal and state officials say about the facility. | Published July 1, 2025 | Read Full Story by Michelle Marchante Ana Ceballos Grethel Aguila

A check point at Alligator Alcatraz as Florida State Representatives denied entry. The facility is within the Florida Everglades, 36 miles west of the central business district of Miami, in Collier County, Florida. , Florida, on Thursday, July 3, 2025. By PHOTO BY AL DIAZ

NO. 6: LAWMAKERS BLAST POSSIBILITY CHILDREN COULD BE SENT TO ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ

Florida Democratic lawmakers are traveling to inspect the site as they bristle over the idea of children detained. | Published July 3, 2025 | Read Full Story by Siena Duncan

Aerial view of structures including gigantic tents built at the recently opened migrant detention center, “Alligator Alcatraz,” located at the site of the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in Ochopee, Florida on Friday July 04, 2025. By Pedro Portal

NO. 7: GIANT BUGS, HEAT AND A HOSPITAL VISIT: INSIDE ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ’S FIRST DAYS

Concerns about conditions for detainees were heightened when one was rushed out of the detention center Monday in an ambulance. | Published July 8, 2025 | Read Full Story by Ana Ceballos Alex Harris Claire Healy

The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.