Target: Abigail Dillen, President of Earthjustice
Goal: Support law firm’s advocacy for protection of Everglades from damaging detention facility.
“What time is it? What day is it? You don’t know if it rains, you don’t know if it’s sunny out there, you don’t know if it’s dark — it’s like you’re dead alive.” This is how the fiancée of one detainee in Florida’s notorious Alligator Alcatraz described living conditions in the sprawling migrant detention facility. Attorneys and other individuals in limited contact with other inmates have echoed the allegations of inhumane treatment, which reportedly includes being enclosed in a cage at all hours of the day while exposed to dangers like sweltering heat and flood waters…and without the benefit of medical aid. Several lawsuits have been filed, with legal challenges expanding to the environmental dangers (as outlined in this ForceChange petition) the prison – located in the heart of the fragile Everglades ecosystem – poses. It is the latter effort that has finally led to accountability for this non-transparent threat to people and to wetlands.
The legal wins began when a federal judge ordered a pause on detainments at the facility. A U.S. District judge later added stronger legal weight to this ruling by ordering the halt of construction (which had already secured millions of dollars in lucrative contracts) on the center and by ordering its dismantling and closure within two months. In the 80-plus page ruling, the judge was unequivocal in condemning the environmental damage Alligator Alcatraz had caused: “The project creates irreparable harm in the form of habitat loss and increased mortality to endangered species in the area.” The ruling also reminded that since the closure of another facility in the same location years earlier, “every Florida senator, and countless local and national political figures, including presidents, have publicly pledged their unequivocal support for the restoration, conservation, and protection of the Everglades.”
Sign the petition below to commend the legal minds who helped ensure a made promise was a kept promise.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Ms. Dillen,
Alligator Alcatraz has already left a damaging human rights legacy, as it has “inspired” similar facilities, including one at a former World War II-era Japanese internment camp. The environmental damage inflicted on a UNESCO World Heritage Site threatened to be even more far-reaching. Thank you for fighting to ensure this damage is mitigated.
The plants, animals, ecosystems – and the tribes who consider this land sacred – now have a real opportunity for stability and restoration. They, nor the advocates who care about the future of these irreplaceable wetlands, will forget it.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo Credit: The White House
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