Amnesty International reported eight months ago that outdoor cages at the Florida Everglades facility were too small for someone to stand up, had no awning, and that people were chained to them.
Posted by Letters from an American, Checked
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- 3 support1 context
- Said
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Letters from an AmericanSep 15, 2026
Amnesty International's December 4, 2025 report described a 2x2-foot cage-like 'box' at Alligator Alcatraz where detainees were shackled and chained to the ground in the sun, which supports the claim that the cages were too small to stand in and that people were chained to them.
The host relays this claim without endorsing it. It counts as passed on, not against the post.
What was said
… Jillian Brockle of the American Prospect suggested that the inspector general's report is likely part of a cover up. She noted that eight months ago, Amnesty International reported that the outdoor cages were too small for someone to stand up, that they had no awning, and that people were chained to them. The Amnesty International report also said time in the cages could be longer than two hours. Then Nick Corasaniti and Hamid Ali Aziz reported in the New York Times on another whistleblower, this one alleging that, in their zeal to find non-citizens on voter …
Letters from an American · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. Amnesty's report, as summarized by NPR, described cages about 2 feet by 2 feet in the open where detainees were shackled at the hands and feet and chained to the ground.[2]
Supports. USA Today's account of the Amnesty report describes the 'box' as a 2x2-foot cage-like structure with feet attached to restraints on the ground, with people exposed to the elements.[3]
Supports. Snopes reviewed the Amnesty report, found no evidence its conclusions were exaggerated or false, and said the report identified a practice meeting the UN definition of torture at the Everglades facility.[1]
Context. The Amnesty report was published December 4, 2025, so 'eight months ago' from the September 15, 2026 post is slightly off; the report was about nine months earlier.[1][3]
Context. The claim's 'no awning' detail is not addressed in the Amnesty-linked coverage. A later OIG cage was photographed under a temporary awning, but that is a different enclosure from the one Amnesty described.[4]
Sources
4 sources: 1 fact-checker, 1 tier 2, 2 not rated
- 1Unpacking Amnesty International report alleging 'torture' and 'human rights violations' at Alligator Alcatrazsnopes.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports, context
- 2Report finds 'inhuman' conditions at two Florida ...npr.org · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 3Detainees subjected to 'torture' at Alligator Alcatraz, group allegesusatoday.com · not rated · cited for: supports, context
- 4Alligator Alcatraz’s Tiny Cages Were Likely Even Tinierprospect.org · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Some detainees at the Florida Everglades facility were locked in individual metal cages with about 18 square feet of floor space for up to two hours.True
- Detainees at the Florida Everglades facility were allowed showers only three times a week.True
- The Department of Homeland Security inspector general released a report detailing violations of standards at the detention camp in the Florida Everglades.True
- The detention center in the Florida Everglades failed in six categories: medical care, food service, personal hygiene, recreation, environmental health and safety, and special management units.True
- The current administration is holding people in concentration camps.Mixed