Detainees held at Alligator Alcatraz describe cage-like units swarmed by mosquitoes
Detainees in Alligator Alcatraz, a new facility in the Everglades, described what they called torturous conditions in cage-like units full of mosquitoes, where fluorescent lights shine bright on them at all times.
Detainees here also called attention to unsanitary conditions, as well as lack of food and reliable medical treatment for their chronic conditions.
'Detention conditions are unliveable,' Tessa Petit, executive director of the Florida Immigrant Coalition, said during a news conference on Tuesday outside the facility.
The Trump administration's push to quickly ramp up immigration arrests has led to overcrowding at Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities.
As of June 20, more than 56,000 people were spending the night in detention centres nationwide on any given day.
That's 40 per cent more than in June 2024 and the highest detention population in U.S. history, according to a Human Rights Watch report. Nearly 72 per cent of those detained have no criminal history.
Concerns over detention conditions intensified this week after the HRW report, published Monday, documented 'abusive practices' at three Florida immigration detention centres over the past six months.
In addition, the New York Immigration Coalition released video showing dozens of men laying on foil sheets on the floor of a crowded immigration processing centre in New York City.
NBC News recently reported on similar allegations coming from immigration advocates and detainees held in detention centres across California, Texas, Louisiana, Washington and New Jersey. They described experiencing hunger, food shortages and sickness.
'It's like a dog cage'
In Tuesday's news conference, Sonia Vichara held her mobile phone up to a microphone so her husband, Rafael Collado, could publicly describe from Alligator Alcatraz the conditions he has endured over the past two weeks.
'It's like a dog cage,' Collado, who is Cuban, said in his native Spanish.
He said that a combination of floodwater from recent storms, limited access to showers and poor sanitation have caused him to get fungus on his feet.
As he was describing how detainees are stripped naked every time they are moved to a different cell and there's not a set schedule to take his blood pressure medication, Collado was told by a guard to hang up, he said, ending the call.
Vichara said her husband had been showing up to his immigration appointments for years until he was detained recently during a routine check-in at an ICE field office in Miramar.
Another detainee, Juan Palma, also spoke from inside Alligator Alcatraz on Monday.
'I feel like my life is in danger,' Palma, who is Cuban, said in Spanish. He described feeling 'in a state of torture', being swarmed by mosquitoes during his sleep and unable to tell night from day because the facility's fluorescent lights are always on.
Palma also reported being allowed to shower only every three to four days and being kept in a cage-style unit with 32 other people.
Both Vichara and Palma's wife, Yanet Lopez, said their respective husbands have criminal records, but they did their time.
NBC Miami reported that Palma's record included grand theft, credit forgery and battery. Vichara did not provide details of Collado's record, only limiting herself to say: 'He did make a mistake, but he paid for it for 10 years.'
That's no excuse to put detainees in harm's way, Petit said.
'We are talking about exposing people to illnesses and even to their death,' she said. 'That is a human rights violation, doesn't matter if you are an immigrant.'
DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin has denied all allegations of inhumane conditions at Alligator Alcatraz and at immigration detention centres across the nation, saying in an email Tuesday: 'All detainees are provided with proper meals, medical treatment, and have opportunities to communicate with their family members and lawyers.'
'Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority.'
McLaughlin also said that ICE 'has worked diligently to obtain greater necessary detention space while avoiding overcrowding', adding that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem 'has called on states and local government to help with bed and detention space capacity'.
Concerns rise as detainee population rises
Janeisy Fernández Díaz, the mother of Michael Borrego Fernández, a Cuban national being held in Alligator Alcatraz, called for the facility's closure Tuesday.
'I want this place to close,' she said on behalf of her son, who is one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed last week by the American Civil Liberties Union against the Department of Homeland Security.
In the complaint, four people being held in Alligator Alcatraz and their attorneys allege that the federal government has interfered with their ability to access detainees and provide them counsel, as well as 'harsh and inhumane conditions' at the facility.
Borrego Fernández reported that people held in Alligator Alcatraz 'are only allowed one meal a day (and given only minutes to eat), are not permitted daily showers, and are otherwise kept around the clock in a cage inside a tent', the complaint states.
He also reported instances of physical assaults and excessive use of force by guards, along with a lack of medical care and attention.
According to Thomas Kennedy, a spokesperson for the Florida Immigrant Coalition, Borrego Fernández has spent more than 17 days at the facility, raising questions over the facility's operating standards.
Alligator Alcatraz is not a traditional detention facility, since it's operated and financed by the state of Florida to enforce federal immigration laws.
NBC News has a pending information request to Florida officials, asking for a list of detainees and a copy of the standards outlining detention rules at the facility.
During Tuesday's news conference, immigration advocates made it a point to reject the Alligator Alcatraz name, which began as a political moniker invented and adopted by Republican leaders and is now the facility's official name.
It is not the only immigration facility in Florida facing allegations.
Based on interviews with 11 current and former detainees at Krome North Service Processing Centre, the Broward Transitional Centre and the Federal Detention Centre between January and June, as well as data analysis and conversations with 14 immigration lawyers, Human Rights Watch concluded in its report that people at these facilities were subjected to 'dangerously substandard medical care, overcrowding, abusive treatment, and restrictions on access to legal and psychosocial support'.
The report also found that detainees were forced to sleep on cold, concrete floors without bedding and were given 'substandard' food.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Advertiser
2 days ago
- The Advertiser
Why BlueFloat's demise is just the beginning, not the end of offshore wind
The news that Spanish energy company BlueFloat bailed on its $10 billion Gippsland offshore wind proposal, has triggered a chorus of people (mostly anti-offshore wind proponents) heralding the end of the industry before it's even begun. Although I don't know about the particulars of BlueFloat's exact situation, which also impacted plans for the Illawarra, as an offshore wind consultant I do know a lot about the process of getting these projects up generally. That's why I can confidently say this actually is just the beginning. This is a new industry for Australia and whenever you do something new for the first time it's like making a pancake, the first one is never quite perfect. Energy-intensive industries like minerals mining and metals manufacturing will be the big winners from offshore wind. There is a reason these industries are co-located with coal-fired power stations historically, and why the offshore wind zones have been designated in these same regions - Gippsland, Illawarra, Hunter. With offshore wind, Australia is looking to capitalise on the growing global demand for green metals. For the Illawarra, that's steel made with renewable energy. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's decision to host a meeting between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers during his visit to China last week shows that our leaders are attuned to the economic potential of green metals. Why green metals? Europe, with Asia soon to follow, has introduced a "carbon border adjustment mechanism" which acts as a tax on polluting industries. What this means is the high-pollution products we currently export will become uncompetitive in the next 10 to 20 years. To replace those export losses, Australia needs to adapt and focus on producing green exports. Our customers are changing their habits, so we must change our offerings. If you owned a doughnut shop and all your customers started demanding cream-filled rather than jam-filled doughnuts you wouldn't keep pushing jam-filled doughnuts. You would switch to cream-filled, otherwise you'd go out of business. So how exactly do we get from here to there? Well there are three main hoops that developers need to jump through to make it happen: The Australian offshore wind market has some unique conditions, for example in the Illawarra it means floating wind technology is needed which is still relatively new. Therefore it's OK to have some delays - it allows Europe and Asia to make the mistakes for us to learn from, and bring industrial costs down for us. But Australia can't afford to wait too long as our polluting exports become less and less viable, we need to pivot to green exports to secure the long-lasting careers that keep communities together. Offshore wind is not just about meeting current energy needs, it will offer export stability; giving local kids the chance to build a life in the place they grew up and earn good money without leaving the region they love. That's why strong community engagement and clear support from both the federal and state government - via an offtake auction pathway - is so important. The news that Spanish energy company BlueFloat bailed on its $10 billion Gippsland offshore wind proposal, has triggered a chorus of people (mostly anti-offshore wind proponents) heralding the end of the industry before it's even begun. Although I don't know about the particulars of BlueFloat's exact situation, which also impacted plans for the Illawarra, as an offshore wind consultant I do know a lot about the process of getting these projects up generally. That's why I can confidently say this actually is just the beginning. This is a new industry for Australia and whenever you do something new for the first time it's like making a pancake, the first one is never quite perfect. Energy-intensive industries like minerals mining and metals manufacturing will be the big winners from offshore wind. There is a reason these industries are co-located with coal-fired power stations historically, and why the offshore wind zones have been designated in these same regions - Gippsland, Illawarra, Hunter. With offshore wind, Australia is looking to capitalise on the growing global demand for green metals. For the Illawarra, that's steel made with renewable energy. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's decision to host a meeting between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers during his visit to China last week shows that our leaders are attuned to the economic potential of green metals. Why green metals? Europe, with Asia soon to follow, has introduced a "carbon border adjustment mechanism" which acts as a tax on polluting industries. What this means is the high-pollution products we currently export will become uncompetitive in the next 10 to 20 years. To replace those export losses, Australia needs to adapt and focus on producing green exports. Our customers are changing their habits, so we must change our offerings. If you owned a doughnut shop and all your customers started demanding cream-filled rather than jam-filled doughnuts you wouldn't keep pushing jam-filled doughnuts. You would switch to cream-filled, otherwise you'd go out of business. So how exactly do we get from here to there? Well there are three main hoops that developers need to jump through to make it happen: The Australian offshore wind market has some unique conditions, for example in the Illawarra it means floating wind technology is needed which is still relatively new. Therefore it's OK to have some delays - it allows Europe and Asia to make the mistakes for us to learn from, and bring industrial costs down for us. But Australia can't afford to wait too long as our polluting exports become less and less viable, we need to pivot to green exports to secure the long-lasting careers that keep communities together. Offshore wind is not just about meeting current energy needs, it will offer export stability; giving local kids the chance to build a life in the place they grew up and earn good money without leaving the region they love. That's why strong community engagement and clear support from both the federal and state government - via an offtake auction pathway - is so important. The news that Spanish energy company BlueFloat bailed on its $10 billion Gippsland offshore wind proposal, has triggered a chorus of people (mostly anti-offshore wind proponents) heralding the end of the industry before it's even begun. Although I don't know about the particulars of BlueFloat's exact situation, which also impacted plans for the Illawarra, as an offshore wind consultant I do know a lot about the process of getting these projects up generally. That's why I can confidently say this actually is just the beginning. This is a new industry for Australia and whenever you do something new for the first time it's like making a pancake, the first one is never quite perfect. Energy-intensive industries like minerals mining and metals manufacturing will be the big winners from offshore wind. There is a reason these industries are co-located with coal-fired power stations historically, and why the offshore wind zones have been designated in these same regions - Gippsland, Illawarra, Hunter. With offshore wind, Australia is looking to capitalise on the growing global demand for green metals. For the Illawarra, that's steel made with renewable energy. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's decision to host a meeting between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers during his visit to China last week shows that our leaders are attuned to the economic potential of green metals. Why green metals? Europe, with Asia soon to follow, has introduced a "carbon border adjustment mechanism" which acts as a tax on polluting industries. What this means is the high-pollution products we currently export will become uncompetitive in the next 10 to 20 years. To replace those export losses, Australia needs to adapt and focus on producing green exports. Our customers are changing their habits, so we must change our offerings. If you owned a doughnut shop and all your customers started demanding cream-filled rather than jam-filled doughnuts you wouldn't keep pushing jam-filled doughnuts. You would switch to cream-filled, otherwise you'd go out of business. So how exactly do we get from here to there? Well there are three main hoops that developers need to jump through to make it happen: The Australian offshore wind market has some unique conditions, for example in the Illawarra it means floating wind technology is needed which is still relatively new. Therefore it's OK to have some delays - it allows Europe and Asia to make the mistakes for us to learn from, and bring industrial costs down for us. But Australia can't afford to wait too long as our polluting exports become less and less viable, we need to pivot to green exports to secure the long-lasting careers that keep communities together. Offshore wind is not just about meeting current energy needs, it will offer export stability; giving local kids the chance to build a life in the place they grew up and earn good money without leaving the region they love. That's why strong community engagement and clear support from both the federal and state government - via an offtake auction pathway - is so important. The news that Spanish energy company BlueFloat bailed on its $10 billion Gippsland offshore wind proposal, has triggered a chorus of people (mostly anti-offshore wind proponents) heralding the end of the industry before it's even begun. Although I don't know about the particulars of BlueFloat's exact situation, which also impacted plans for the Illawarra, as an offshore wind consultant I do know a lot about the process of getting these projects up generally. That's why I can confidently say this actually is just the beginning. This is a new industry for Australia and whenever you do something new for the first time it's like making a pancake, the first one is never quite perfect. Energy-intensive industries like minerals mining and metals manufacturing will be the big winners from offshore wind. There is a reason these industries are co-located with coal-fired power stations historically, and why the offshore wind zones have been designated in these same regions - Gippsland, Illawarra, Hunter. With offshore wind, Australia is looking to capitalise on the growing global demand for green metals. For the Illawarra, that's steel made with renewable energy. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's decision to host a meeting between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers during his visit to China last week shows that our leaders are attuned to the economic potential of green metals. Why green metals? Europe, with Asia soon to follow, has introduced a "carbon border adjustment mechanism" which acts as a tax on polluting industries. What this means is the high-pollution products we currently export will become uncompetitive in the next 10 to 20 years. To replace those export losses, Australia needs to adapt and focus on producing green exports. Our customers are changing their habits, so we must change our offerings. If you owned a doughnut shop and all your customers started demanding cream-filled rather than jam-filled doughnuts you wouldn't keep pushing jam-filled doughnuts. You would switch to cream-filled, otherwise you'd go out of business. So how exactly do we get from here to there? Well there are three main hoops that developers need to jump through to make it happen: The Australian offshore wind market has some unique conditions, for example in the Illawarra it means floating wind technology is needed which is still relatively new. Therefore it's OK to have some delays - it allows Europe and Asia to make the mistakes for us to learn from, and bring industrial costs down for us. But Australia can't afford to wait too long as our polluting exports become less and less viable, we need to pivot to green exports to secure the long-lasting careers that keep communities together. Offshore wind is not just about meeting current energy needs, it will offer export stability; giving local kids the chance to build a life in the place they grew up and earn good money without leaving the region they love. That's why strong community engagement and clear support from both the federal and state government - via an offtake auction pathway - is so important.
7NEWS
3 days ago
- 7NEWS
Detainees held at Alligator Alcatraz describe cage-like units swarmed by mosquitoes
US legal advocates and relatives of immigrant detainees held in Florida's notorious Alligator Alcatraz are demanding the closure of the state-run facility, as allegations of human rights violations there and at other immigration detention centres mount. Detainees in Alligator Alcatraz, a new facility in the Everglades, described what they called torturous conditions in cage-like units full of mosquitoes, where fluorescent lights shine bright on them at all times. Detainees here also called attention to unsanitary conditions, as well as lack of food and reliable medical treatment for their chronic conditions. 'Detention conditions are unliveable,' Tessa Petit, executive director of the Florida Immigrant Coalition, said during a news conference on Tuesday outside the facility. The Trump administration's push to quickly ramp up immigration arrests has led to overcrowding at Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities. As of June 20, more than 56,000 people were spending the night in detention centres nationwide on any given day. That's 40 per cent more than in June 2024 and the highest detention population in U.S. history, according to a Human Rights Watch report. Nearly 72 per cent of those detained have no criminal history. Concerns over detention conditions intensified this week after the HRW report, published Monday, documented 'abusive practices' at three Florida immigration detention centres over the past six months. In addition, the New York Immigration Coalition released video showing dozens of men laying on foil sheets on the floor of a crowded immigration processing centre in New York City. NBC News recently reported on similar allegations coming from immigration advocates and detainees held in detention centres across California, Texas, Louisiana, Washington and New Jersey. They described experiencing hunger, food shortages and sickness. 'It's like a dog cage' In Tuesday's news conference, Sonia Vichara held her mobile phone up to a microphone so her husband, Rafael Collado, could publicly describe from Alligator Alcatraz the conditions he has endured over the past two weeks. 'It's like a dog cage,' Collado, who is Cuban, said in his native Spanish. He said that a combination of floodwater from recent storms, limited access to showers and poor sanitation have caused him to get fungus on his feet. As he was describing how detainees are stripped naked every time they are moved to a different cell and there's not a set schedule to take his blood pressure medication, Collado was told by a guard to hang up, he said, ending the call. Vichara said her husband had been showing up to his immigration appointments for years until he was detained recently during a routine check-in at an ICE field office in Miramar. Another detainee, Juan Palma, also spoke from inside Alligator Alcatraz on Monday. 'I feel like my life is in danger,' Palma, who is Cuban, said in Spanish. He described feeling 'in a state of torture', being swarmed by mosquitoes during his sleep and unable to tell night from day because the facility's fluorescent lights are always on. Palma also reported being allowed to shower only every three to four days and being kept in a cage-style unit with 32 other people. Both Vichara and Palma's wife, Yanet Lopez, said their respective husbands have criminal records, but they did their time. NBC Miami reported that Palma's record included grand theft, credit forgery and battery. Vichara did not provide details of Collado's record, only limiting herself to say: 'He did make a mistake, but he paid for it for 10 years.' That's no excuse to put detainees in harm's way, Petit said. 'We are talking about exposing people to illnesses and even to their death,' she said. 'That is a human rights violation, doesn't matter if you are an immigrant.' DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin has denied all allegations of inhumane conditions at Alligator Alcatraz and at immigration detention centres across the nation, saying in an email Tuesday: 'All detainees are provided with proper meals, medical treatment, and have opportunities to communicate with their family members and lawyers.' 'Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority.' McLaughlin also said that ICE 'has worked diligently to obtain greater necessary detention space while avoiding overcrowding', adding that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem 'has called on states and local government to help with bed and detention space capacity'. Concerns rise as detainee population rises Janeisy Fernández Díaz, the mother of Michael Borrego Fernández, a Cuban national being held in Alligator Alcatraz, called for the facility's closure Tuesday. 'I want this place to close,' she said on behalf of her son, who is one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed last week by the American Civil Liberties Union against the Department of Homeland Security. In the complaint, four people being held in Alligator Alcatraz and their attorneys allege that the federal government has interfered with their ability to access detainees and provide them counsel, as well as 'harsh and inhumane conditions' at the facility. Borrego Fernández reported that people held in Alligator Alcatraz 'are only allowed one meal a day (and given only minutes to eat), are not permitted daily showers, and are otherwise kept around the clock in a cage inside a tent', the complaint states. He also reported instances of physical assaults and excessive use of force by guards, along with a lack of medical care and attention. According to Thomas Kennedy, a spokesperson for the Florida Immigrant Coalition, Borrego Fernández has spent more than 17 days at the facility, raising questions over the facility's operating standards. Alligator Alcatraz is not a traditional detention facility, since it's operated and financed by the state of Florida to enforce federal immigration laws. NBC News has a pending information request to Florida officials, asking for a list of detainees and a copy of the standards outlining detention rules at the facility. During Tuesday's news conference, immigration advocates made it a point to reject the Alligator Alcatraz name, which began as a political moniker invented and adopted by Republican leaders and is now the facility's official name. It is not the only immigration facility in Florida facing allegations. Based on interviews with 11 current and former detainees at Krome North Service Processing Centre, the Broward Transitional Centre and the Federal Detention Centre between January and June, as well as data analysis and conversations with 14 immigration lawyers, Human Rights Watch concluded in its report that people at these facilities were subjected to 'dangerously substandard medical care, overcrowding, abusive treatment, and restrictions on access to legal and psychosocial support'. The report also found that detainees were forced to sleep on cold, concrete floors without bedding and were given 'substandard' food.
The Age
16-07-2025
- The Age
Trump's fans forgive him everything. Why not the Epstein files?
Over the past squalid decade, many of us have let go of the hope that Donald Trump could do or say anything to shake the faith of his ardent base. They've been largely unfazed by boasts of sexual assault and porn star payoffs, an attempted coup and obscenely self-enriching crypto schemes. They cheered wildly at his promises to build a wall paid for by Mexico, then shrugged when it didn't happen. The BBC reported on a 39-year-old Iranian immigrant whose devotion to Trump endured even when she was put in Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention. 'I will support him until the day I die,' she said from lock-up. 'He's making America great again.' So it has been fascinating to watch a vocal part of Trump's movement revolt over his administration's handling of files from the case of Jeffrey Epstein, the sex-trafficking financier who died in jail in 2019 in what was ruled a suicide. Running for president, Trump promised to release the Epstein files, which some thought would contain evidence of murder. 'Yet another good reason to vote for Trump,' Republican Senator Mike Lee, from Utah, wrote on social media. 'Americans deserve to know why Epstein didn't kill himself.' Some of the influencers who now staff Trump's administration built their followings by spinning wild stories about the case, promising revelations that would lay their enemies low. Epstein's client list 'is going to rock the political world,' Dan Bongino, now deputy director of the FBI, said in September. Appearing on Fox News in February, Attorney General Pam Bondi was asked whether her department would release 'a list of Jeffrey Epstein's clients'. She responded, 'It's sitting on my desk right now to review.' Now she says there was no such client list. Last week, the Justice Department and the FBI released a memo saying that Epstein killed himself and no more information would be forthcoming: 'It is the determination of the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation that no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted. Trump has implored his followers to forget about Epstein, writing, in a petulant Truth Social post, that the files were 'written by Obama, Crooked Hillary' and various other deep-state foes. Let's 'not waste Time and Energy on Jeffrey Epstein, somebody that nobody cares about,' he wrote. But he was wrong: Lots of people care. Trump's followers responded to his attempt to wave Epstein away with uncharacteristic fury and disappointment. Bongino has reportedly threatened to resign over Bondi's handling of the case. Epstein was a major subject at Turning Point USA's Student Action Summit, a conservative conference that began on Friday. Speaking from the stage in Tampa, Florida, comedian Dave Smith accused Trump of actively covering up 'a giant child rapist ring.' The audience cheered and applauded. Having nurtured conspiracy theories for his entire political career, Trump suddenly seems in danger of being consumed by one. In many ways, it's delicious to watch, but there's also reason for anxiety, because for some in Trump's movement, this setback is simply proof that they're up against a conspiracy more powerful than they had ever imagined. 'What we just learned is that dealing with the Epstein Operation is above the President's pay grade,' posted Bret Weinstein, an evolutionary biologist and podcaster. An important question, now, is who they decide is pulling the strings. Epstein obsessives are right to be suspicious about the weird turns the case has taken. So much about it feels inexplicable, including the sweetheart plea deal Epstein got in 2008, and the fact that he was apparently able to kill himself despite being one of the most monitored inmates in the country. Even if it turns out that a review of the case doesn't implicate anyone who hasn't already been charged, it should be a scandal that Bondi misled the public about the existence of a client list. But the administration lies all the time — that alone doesn't explain why this issue has so tested the MAGA coalition. To understand why it's such a crisis, you need to understand the crucial role that Epstein plays in the mythologies buttressing MAGA. The case is of equal interest to QAnon types, who see in Epstein's crimes proof of their conviction that networks of elite paedophiles have hijacked America, and of right-wing critics of Israel, who are convinced that Epstein worked for Mossad, the country's spy service.
