TALLAHASSY, Fla. (AP) — The administration of the Florida Republican government, Ron DeSantis, is competing against the construction of a makeshift immigration detention facility on the Everglades runway over opposition from Native American leaders who view the area as a sacred ancestor home.
Activist Jessica Namas said a series of portable generators and dump trucks loaded with embedded dirt on Thursday flowed into the site on Thursday. The state is moving ahead by building a heavy-duty tent, trailer and other temporary building complex on a county-owned airfield in Big Cypress National Reserve, about 45 miles (72 km) west of downtown Miami.
A spokesman for Florida Emergency Management, who leads the project, did not respond to requests for comment.
State officials characterize the site as an ideal place to hold immigrants, saying it “not too many” besides pythons and crocodiles.
Indigenous leaders who can trace their roots to areas that were thousands of years ago challenge that. And they are denounced the state’s plans to build something called “Alligator Alcatraz” in their hometown.
For generations, the wide wetlands of today in South Florida were home to the Mikcoskis and the Seminoles of Florida, today, as well as the Indigenous peoples who make up the Seminoles of Oklahoma.
“Big Cypress is the traditional home of the tribe, as some suggest, rather than Mik Corshikey’s hometown is an unmanned wasteland for alligators and Pisons. The landscape protected the landscape for generations.”
Big Cypress has 15 traditional Mikkoski and Seminole villages, and not only did Cypress testify before the 2024 parliament, but also ceremonies, burial sites and other gathering sites.
“We live here. Our ancestors fought here and died here. They are buried here,” he said. “Big Cypress is a part of us, and we are part of that.”
While critics have denounced the facility and what they call a state’s obvious dependence on alligators as a cruel spectacle, DeSantis and other state officials have defended it as part of Florida’s muscle efforts to carry out President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.
The Florida State Guard is preparing to deploy up to 100 soldiers to the facility on July 1, providing increased security and staffing for the site, as well as other “as directed.”
“Due to the liquidity nature of the situation, there is no timeline for this mission, but we will remain in the direction of Governor DeSantis as long as necessary,” FNG spokesman Britiany Funderbalk said in a statement.
Tribal leaders and environmentalists are urging states to change courses, noting that billions of state and federal funds have been poured into the Everglades’ recovery in recent years.
Indigenous leaders and activists are planning to meet again on Saturday to hold demonstrations highlighting why the area is “sacred” and “not destroyed” and “should be protected.”
“This place became our shelter during the war era. It provides a place to continue our culture and tradition,” wrote Betty Osceola, leader of Miccosukee, in a social media post announcing the demonstration.
“And we need to protect it for future generations,” she added.
