On July 18th, local time, it was learned that the U.S. Department of Defense Secretary, Peter Gibbons, signed an agreement allowing the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to use the McGuire Dix-Lickbst Joint Base in Trenton, New Jersey, southeast of the state capital, as a temporary detention facility for illegal immigrants.
Gibbs wrote to New Jersey’s Congressman Herb Conaway on July 15th, stating that the McGuire Dix-Lickbst Joint Base had been approved “temporarily for use” in detaining illegal immigrants. He mentioned that this move would not have a negative impact on military training.
It is reported that besides New Jersey, another military base in Indiana has also been used for the temporary detention of illegal immigrants.
△ Florida’s “Crocodile Devil Island” Detention Facility
Since Trump took office in January, the U.S. government has been firm in its efforts to expel illegal immigrants. On July 1st, the newly established immigration prison in Florida, “Crocodile Devil Island,” officially commenced operations. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano stated on July 12th that she was negotiating with five Republican-led states to build similar facilities to “Crocodile Devil Island” in Florida.
A newly established immigrant detention center in southern Florida has informally been named “Crocodile Devil Island,” located at the Deerfield-Collier Training and Transit Airport in the state’s Big Cypress Swamp area, known for its presence of crocodiles and other reptiles. The name comes from San Francisco’s Devil Island, which was notorious for harsh conditions and difficulty in escape during the 1930s to the 1960s, later developed into a tourist attraction. (Liu Xu)