Donald Trump has been slammed after making "villainous" and "cruel" comments about his proposed "Alligator Alcatraz" detention facility.
Since beginning his second presidential term in January, Trump has vowed that “all illegal entry will immediately be halted” while promising to deport “millions and millions of criminal aliens," per Sky News.
The new detention facility is being built on an abandoned airstrip in the middle of the Everglades near Miami, at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, about 43 miles from downtown.
State lawmakers proposed the facility to support Trump’s deportation agenda, following a 2023 executive order by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis that invoked emergency powers to curb undocumented migration.
The nickname comes from Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, who said: “You don't need to invest that much in the perimeter. If people get out, there's not much waiting for them other than alligators and pythons.”
When asked by a Fox News reporter whether the idea was that migrants would get eaten by alligators if they escaped, Trump responded: “I guess that’s the concept. Snakes are fast but alligators... we’re going to teach them how to run away from an alligator. Don’t run in a straight line, run waving hand like this.”
These comments have triggered a wave of criticism online.
One person wrote: "Unspeakably cruel is a hallmark of MAGA. Democrats need to begin to adopt some of this cruelty toward the enemies of American ideals."
A second said: "He really does think this is just a big reality tv show. And most of his supporters act as though it is too."
A third added: "Unspeakably cruel is a hallmark of MAGA. Democrats need to begin to adopt some of this cruelty toward the enemies of American ideals."
The facility will have the capacity to hold around 1,000 detainees and is set to begin operations in July or August. Speaking at a press conference, DeSantis hinted it may not be the last of its kind: “We'll probably also do something similar up at Camp Blanding.”
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed that federal funds would support the facility, stating: “We are working at turbo speed on cost-effective and innovative ways to deliver on the American people's mandate for mass deportations of criminal illegal aliens.”
Noem said the facility will be funded through FEMA to help “expand facilities and bed space in just days,” per BBC News.
A convoy of trucks carrying tents, construction materials, and portable toilets has arrived at the site, laying the foundation for the controversial facility in the mosquito-heavy, alligator-filled Everglades.
Daniella Levine Cava, the Democratic mayor of Miami-Dade County, which owns the airstrip, stated she has “requested information” from state authorities and has “clearly laid out several concerns” regarding funding and environmental impacts.
While immigration raids have increased across the US, operations appear less aggressive in Miami-Dade, yet many undocumented Latinos in the area are staying home out of fear of being arrested and detained at the new facility.