It is unbecoming of public officials and corrosive of the common good to speak of the deterrence value of ‘alligators and pythons’ at the Collier-Dade facility.’

Republican states are considering building versions of Florida's "Alligator Alcatraz," a detention facility for illegal immigrants that was celebrated by President Donald Trump.

At the direction of Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida is quickly constructing a $450 million-a-year immigration detention center, dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz."

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis bragged about his recent tour of 'alligator alcatraz' with President Donald Trump and Secretary Kristi Noem during a recent press conference in Duval County, Florida.

Ron DeSantis said that the same facilities would provide food to the undocumented migrants as well as provide legal advice.

The mocking of immigrant detainees harks back to “the worst parts of our history” when similar jokes and tropes, such as “gator bait,” were used to dehumanize Black people and desensitize people to the harm and violence inflicted upon them, says ACLU Florida Executive Director Bacardi Jackson.

GardaWorld, an international security company whose U.S. headquarters are in Boca Raton, is one of several contractors hired to do work for Alligator Alcatraz. Anyone can view a sampling of recent comments, but you must be a Times subscriber to contribute. Log in above or subscribe here.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has previously said there would be no impacts to vegetation and there would be no paving or permanent construction at the Everglades site.