1. United States
2. Neb.
3. Letter

I am writing to express strong opposition to the planned migrant detention facility in the Florida Everglades, known as “Alligator Alcatraz.” While located in another state, this facility sets a dangerous precedent for how we treat vulnerable people and how federal resources are used. Designed as an outdoor, tent-based camp without air conditioning, the facility will expose up to 3,000 detainees—many of whom have not been charged with any crime—to extreme heat, mosquito-infested swampland, and proximity to alligators and pythons. The use of FEMA funds for this $450 million-per-year operation is especially troubling, given how often those funds are desperately needed for actual disaster relief across states like Nebraska. This project is not about safety or justice—it is about performative cruelty. Much like the tent prisons once built by Sheriff Joe Arpaio, “Alligator Alcatraz” appears designed to publicly humiliate, punish, and dehumanize people. It reflects an alarming trend of turning immigration enforcement into a political spectacle. Such treatment runs counter to American values of due process, human dignity, and compassion. No one—regardless of immigration status—should be subjected to unsafe and inhumane conditions as a matter of government policy. You need to to take immediate action: Demand a federal investigation into the use of FEMA funds for this facility. Condemn the project publicly and support legislation to prevent similar detention centers. Promote humane, lawful, and community-based alternatives to mass outdoor detention. We need leadership that reflects our highest values—not silence in the face of injustice. Detaining people in sweltering tents in the middle of a swamp, under military guard, surrounded by wildlife, is not security policy. It is state-sanctioned cruelty. Congress must act before this becomes the new hateful form of immigration enforcement.