he Everglades: From Sanctuary to Detention

I spent a lot of time in The Everglades back in the 70s. I wish I could share the images I captured – endless sawgrass marshes stretching out in every direction, alligators drifting lazily in the sloughs, and birds with colors so vivid they seemed unreal. Those photos still sit on old slides, a quiet record of a place unlike anywhere else on Earth.

The Everglades has always been a place of life and resilience. A place where nature thrived despite human attempts to drain it, build over it, or exploit it. But now, it’s being used for something it was never meant to hold: a detention center for immigrants.

This new facility, dubbed by some as “Alligator Alcatraz,” is being built to detain immigrants who have been arrested and are awaiting deportation under new Trump administration policies. The irony is devastating. A place that has always been a symbol of wild freedom and unique beauty is now becoming a prison for people whose only crime was seeking a better life.

It makes me sad to see what The Everglades is being used for today – and how the media reduces it to sensational headlines. The land is more than a backdrop for human cruelty. When I think back to those quiet mornings with my camera, I remember a place of wonder and refuge. I can only hope we find a way to restore both the dignity of the land and the dignity of the people we are so willing to lock away.