‘Alligator Alcatraz’ merch appears on Amazon and Florida GOP website, making light of controversial facility

‘Alligator Alcatraz’ merch appears on Amazon and Florida GOP website, making light of controversial facility



In a move clearly meant to celebrate a facility that has raised serious human rights and environmental concerns, online merchants are now selling merchandise that promotes the Everglades-based migrant detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz.”

The website for the Florida GOP is promoting a shirt, hat, and beverage cooler in support of the quickly constructed, controversial building. The shirt and cooler feature an image of a nondescript building in a swamp with an alligator and snake in front of it. 

‘Alligator Alcatraz’ merch appears on Amazon and Florida GOP website, making light of controversial facility | DeviceDaily.com
[Screenshot: Florida GOP store]

Alligator Alcatraz shirts and hats are also being sold by merchants on Amazon, featuring everything from a buff alligator with a gun to one behind bars for some reason. There’s even one dubbed “retro vintage,” which features a sunbathing alligator. 

‘Alligator Alcatraz’ merch appears on Amazon and Florida GOP website, making light of controversial facility | DeviceDaily.com
[Screenshot: Amazon]

The detention center, meant to hold up to 3,000 beds, has faced backlash from immigrant rights activists, Florida’s indigenous community, and countless others, CNN reports

Trump visited the controversial migrant detention center on Tuesday, July 1, alongside Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. A pro-Trump influencer joined the visit and posted on social media that he had received “official Alligator Alcatraz merch.”

‘Alligator Alcatraz’ merch appears on Amazon and Florida GOP website, making light of controversial facility | DeviceDaily.com
[Screenshot: Amazon]

Treating the entire experience as amusing rather than evil, Trump emphasized the alligators and snakes surrounding the center. At one point, he stated, “We’re going to teach them how to run away from an alligator if they escape prison. Don’t run in a straight line,” according to the New York Times

Yes, that’s the American president joking about alligators eating migrants. 


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sarah Fielding is an acclaimed journalist with seven years of experience covering mental health, social issues, and tech for publications such as Engadget, PS, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and Insider. She’s also a cofounder of Empire Coven, a space highlighting trailblazing women across the United States 

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