Workers Circle and Sanctuary of the South Launch Unprecedented Campaign: No Human Being in Alligator Alcatraz Left Without Counsel
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 28, 2026
Media Contact: The TASC Group
Email: workerscircle@thetascgroup.com, 347-901-9352
The cruelly-named “Alligator Alcatraz” detention center is reportedly shutting down. But for the hundreds of people locked inside, the fight isn’t over. When the Everglades center closes, they face deportation or transfer to other facilities across the country, vanishing into an already opaque system… yet again.
The Workers Circle and Sanctuary of the South (SOS) are stepping in. The two organizations have joined forces to launch an unprecedented intervention: to give every unrepresented person detained in Alligator Alcatraz sound legal counsel, and a real shot at securing their release. If they are transferred, that support will go with them.
On Sunday, May 31, at the Freedom Vigil outside Alligator Alcatraz, immigration lawyers with SOS will be on hand to advise families whose loved ones are detained on their legal rights and options, as well as identify anyone detained without a lawyer, and ensure they can speak to one free of charge. Outreach, including in-person legal visits, are already underway to the more than thirty people without legal counsel that the Workers Circle already identified through the weekly freedom vigil that they organize.
“Of the hundreds of people still detained at Alligator Alcatraz, the vast majority are navigating this system without counsel,” said Katie Blankenship, founder and managing attorney at SOS. “Most cannot afford counsel and are left to languish for months without due process. We aim to change that. Participating immigration attorneys will provide free universal consultations, receiving compensation at reduced rates enabled by the Workers Circle’s generous donation to fund greater access to counsel and transparency inside the black hole of ICE detention. This is an unprecedented program that we hope to grow and spread throughout the country. ”
The Workers Circle donated $50,000 to SOS this week, and has since raised an additional $50,000 to pilot this new model of uniting grassroots advocacy and legal advocacy. SOS is partnering with immigration lawyers and local nonprofits to ensure capacity for legal consultations and representation to fight back against the suffering, rampant violence, discrimination, sexual assault, and illegal disappearances to third countries carried out by the United States government.
For forty-four consecutive weeks, the Workers Circle has spearheaded Freedom Vigils outside of Alligator Alcatraz, uniting family members and their loved ones who are detained with a remarkably diverse, cross-partisan coalition of Florida-based organizations and individuals that has relentlessly denounced the cruelty and corruption at the center and called for an end to the vicious ICE abductions, detentions, and deportations happening nationwide. This movement of ordinary people made Alligator Alcatraz a massive political liability, fueling the momentum behind its expected shutdown.
“People whose loved ones are detained and people who are themselves detained join the vigils, some calling from inside the detention center to speak out. ” said Noelle Damico, Director of Social Justice at the Workers Circle."They are central to getting the truth about the violence, lawlessness, and torture that is happening inside these detention centers out to the public and Congress so that we can bring these horrors to an end. And they deserve more than an audience. They deserve a lawyer, a defense, and a real chance at freedom. They deserve justice.”
No one should face deportation without legal counsel. Support this effort.
About The Workers Circle
The Workers Circleis a national, secular Jewish social justice organization founded by Eastern European immigrants who fled pogroms and persecutions to seek democratic freedoms and build “a better and more beautiful world for all” at the turn of the 20th century. That history drives our work for human equality and robust democracy today. Our multigenerational activist community of 250,000+ people powers our strategic, non-partisan campaigns to empower voters, strengthen Constitutional rights, and build a durable, grassroots infrastructure to demand the multiracial democracy we need. Core campaigns of the Workers Circle include freedom vigils, talk to your sheriff, democracy circles, and voter empowerment.
About Sanctuary of the South
Sanctuary of the South (SOS) is a grassroots legal services organization that provides critical, affordable legal defense to immigrant families affected by detention, deportation, and abuse. SOS offers direct representation in detention centers across the Southeast, brings federal litigation to hold the government accountable for constitutional violations, and provides robust safety planning for individuals, families, businesses, and communities. Find out more at sanctuaryofthesouth.com