Miccosukee tribe wins court order to dismantle detention center

A federal judge ordered the closure of the Alligator Alcatraz immigration detention center in the Florida Everglades after the Miccosukee Tribe joined environmental groups in a lawsuit, according to court documents reported by El País. The lawsuit argued that the center threatened wetlands, endangered species and access to traditional hunting and gathering sites.

Federal Judge Kathleen Williams ruled that the facility, built in eight days in June along the Tamiami Trail, would cause direct harm to the tribe, whose identity is tied to the Everglades. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he would continue to defend the center, calling the judge “an activist.” Miccosukee tribal members said the ruling affirms their long history of protecting their ancestral lands. “The Everglades is meant for our tribes, it protects life, it shields it. It’s not meant to detain life,” museum guide Troy Sanders said.