In the News
Chair Nikki Fried Denounces “Alligator Alcatraz” Plans in the Everglades
Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried released the following statement in response to Governor Ron DeSantis’s proposal to build an immigrant detention center on Miami-Dade and Collier County-owned land in the Everglades:
“Governor DeSantis and Attorney General James Uthmeier are once again abusing their power — this time by hijacking Miami Dade and Collier County owned land and damaging one of the most fragile ecosystems on earth to build a 1,000-bed immigration detention facility in the heart of the Florida Everglades.
This proposed detention center isn’t just cruel, it’s environmentally catastrophic. This facility would desecrate ecologically critical wetlands, trample on Tribal sovereignty, and transform one of the world’s most cherished ecosystems into a prison camp for political gain.
The DeSantis administration is using emergency orders, originally signed under President Biden to address COVID-19, to bypass state purchasing laws and fast-track this project. The Everglades is a national treasure, one we’ve fought for generations to protect and one Ron DeSantis himself pledged to safeguard on his campaign trail.
Let me be clear: this isn’t border policy — this is a land grab, plain and simple. Attorney General James Uthmeier, best known as the architect of the Martha’s Vineyard immigrant stunt, is again using human lives as props. This is more political theater to distract from the real crisis Floridians are facing: skyrocketing groceries and unaffordable housing.
We will not stand by while Ron DeSantis turns the Everglades into a deportation launchpad. Florida Democrats stand with local leaders, environmental advocates, Tribal nations, and immigrant rights organizations in saying: not here, not ever.”
