The forgotten racial history of Alligator Alcatraz

The recently shuttered immigrant detention facility continued a long tradition of using alligators in ways that have reinforced demeaning racial stereotypes.

By: Mark V. Barrow, Jr., Virginia Tech, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: August 11, 2026

Words: 1,250

Last Updated: 1 week ago

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By Mark V. Barrow, Jr., Virginia Tech

The migrant detention center known as Alligator Alcatraz is closed, but much about it remains unresolved. There are lawsuits over detainees’ treatment, environmental claims over damage to protected wetlands and uncertainty about the future of the airstrip it was built on.

One aspect of the South Florida facility has drawn far less attention, though: the name itself, and the long history of associating alligators …

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