The Republican Party of Florida has removed a line of deportation-themed merchandise from its online store after Home Depot objected to the unauthorised use of its branding. The items, which included hats, T-shirts and mugs emblazoned with “THE DEPORT DEPOT” and mimicking the retailer’s signature orange square and blocky stencil font, were pulled within two days of going on sale.
Home Depot spokesperson Sarah McDonald said the company does not allow any organisation to use its branding or logo for commercial purposes. Although posts advertising the merchandise were deleted from X on Sunday, The Washington Post reported that one promotion remained on Instagram for about 30 minutes after the newspaper made an inquiry.
The merchandise was launched after Governor Ron DeSantis unveiled plans for a new immigrant detention centre dubbed the “Deportation Depot” last week. The facility, to be housed at Baker Correctional Institution in a rural area between Tallahassee and Jacksonville, is expected to hold up to 1,300 people and will operate in partnership with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to support the federal government’s mass deportation agenda.
DeSantis said the centre would be operational soon, adding: “The reason for this is not to just house people indefinitely. We want to process, stage, and then return illegal aliens to their home country. That is the name of the game.”
The move follows a federal court order halting new construction at the “Alligator Alcatraz” detention centre in the Everglades after an environmental lawsuit. Lawyers and detainees at that facility have reported deteriorating conditions, including a possible Covid-19 outbreak, though the Department of Homeland Security said there is “no widespread disease circulating”.
