President Trump has instructed federal officials to open Alcatraz for detainees. It’s not the first time a topic has been born.
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For those who have seen dozens of films featuring Alcatraz over the years, it was shut down more than 60 years ago, just hearing the words reminded me of the image of the 22-acre island of San Francisco Bay and its infamous former prison.
Sean Connery and Nicholas Cage collaborated there in the 1996 film The Rock. It was also seen in “Asceas From Alcatraz” with Clint Eastwood in 1969, and depicted in the final battle scene in X Men: Last Stand.
So it quickly sparked interest when President Donald Trump deleted the phrase “rebuilt and open Alcatraz” just before 7pm on May 4th. It’s not the first time the idea has come up to house migrants who have been detained using a dilapidated facility.
“It’s a symbol of law and order,” Trump said in response to a question from a Reuters reporter on Sunday night about what he gave him the idea.
“That’s an idea I had,” Trump told reporters late in the evening. “Many of these radical judges want to get tried for everyone who is illegal in our country.”
“When we were a more serious country, in the past we didn’t hesitate to lock in the most dangerous criminals and be far from those who could harm them,” Trump said in the Social Post of Truth. “We no longer tolerate these serial criminals who spread filth, bloodshed and mayhem on our streets anymore, so today I am leading the Department of Justice, FBI and Homeland Security, together with the Office of Justice, FBI and Homeland Security, to reopen the significantly expanded and rebuilt Alcatraz and to house America’s most laid back Ender.
At this time, Alcatraz is a very popular national historic destination and is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Park Partners’ revenues are $60 million, attracting 1.6 million visitors a year, according to the National Park Service. It was placed in a national historic location in 1976 and was appointed a National Historic Landmark in 1986.
Had Alcatraz previously considered reusing it?
When the largest security prisons were closed in 1963 by then-Attor General Robert Kennedy, the Federal Bureau of Prisons said it was too expensive to continue operating as it would require $3 million to $5 million in repairs and maintenance. The department reported that it is expensive to operate three times more than other federal prisons, primarily due to its physical isolation and lack of fresh water.
In 1981, Alcatraz Island was one of 14 sites rated as the Reagan administration searched for locations that housed 10,000-20,000 Cuban detainees during the Mariel Boat Lift. However, the site was rejected due to its lack of utility, its historical nature and popularity as a tourist destination.
According to a study in a 1994 paper published by Oxford University Press, Alcatraz had only 336 prisoners, even at its maximum capacity, but its population never reached more than about 300.
This is not the first time Alcatraz has appeared among the Trump family this year. “Alcatraz should resume too,” the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., responded to a post in January X about sending undocumented immigrants to Cuba’s Guantanamo Bay.
You need to know about the history of Alcatraz:
One national park website calls Alcatraz “the most Grimm symbol in North America of the Hand of Justice.”
- In the past, the Indigenous Olron and the Miwok tribes on the coast served as a place to isolate those who violated tribal laws.
- In 1775, Spanish explorer Juan Manuel de Araya is said to have named it “Isla de los Alcatraces,” a translation of the island of the Pelicans.
- It was the first lighthouse sight on the West Coast, and in 1854 became the first nautical ramp on the West Coast, home to the military fort during the California Gold Rush.
- It began to embrace prisoners during the Civil War and was eventually opened in 1934 as the largest security prison.
- The prisoners gained notoriety because they included infamous criminals such as Al Capone and “machine gun” Kelly. According to the history of the National Park Service and the Prison Bureau, it has been noted for retaining “violators” for punishment and incarceration, including those who were administrative issues in other prisons.
Has anyone really escaped Alcatraz?
Over 29 years, 36 men tried to escape. According to the FBI, the outcome of the three men who fled in 1962 remains a mystery.
Frank Morris and brothers John and Clarence Anglin hatched their escape plans for months, including making dummy heads made of plaster and real hair to make them look like they’re in bed. They used homemade drills made from vacuum cleaners to loosen the air holes in the cells, leave the prison through the utility corridor, and launch a raft into the bay.
That’s where the trail got colder, and during 17 years of research, the FBI was unable to determine whether the man survived.
USA Today’s national correspondent, Dinah Voyles Pulver, has been covering the environment, climate change and other news for decades. Contact her at dpulver @usatoday.com or @dinahvp.
