Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has said the Trump administration deliberately selected Louisiana's notorious Angola prison to hold immigration detainees in the hope that its fearsome reputation would encourage people in the US illegally to self-deport. Speaking at the facility on Wednesday, Noem described it as a place for the “worst of the worst” Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) detainees, and confirmed that its notoriety was a factor in the choice.
The complex, part of the Louisiana State Penitentiary known as Angola, will initially hold 51 detainees, with Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry expecting that number to rise to over 400 in the coming months. The detainees are being kept separate from the general prison population, which includes more than 6,300 inmates and 50 death row prisoners. The most recent execution at Angola took place in March using nitrogen gas.
Civil rights advocates have voiced alarm. Eunice Cho of the American Civil Liberties Union’s National Prison Project told the New York Times that Angola has “a particularly dark history of abuse and repression that’s almost singular in prison history in the United States.” Concerns include safety issues, human rights violations, and potential breaches of constitutional protections for detainees held alongside violent criminals.
The facility, which was refurbished after sitting vacant for years, is surrounded by five rows of barbed wire and a guard tower. Cells are single-occupancy with a bed, toilet, and sink. Outside are chain-link enclosures. A sign originally reading “Camp 47” – a reference to Donald Trump as the 47th president – was changed to “Camp 57” in honour of Landry, Louisiana’s 57th governor.
Angola, an 18,000-acre prison, has a history dating back over a century and was described in the 1960s and 1970s as “the bloodiest prison in America”. It has seen violence, riots, escapes, and inhumane conditions. Noem’s remarks come amid the Trump administration’s broader immigration crackdown, including a detention centre in the Florida Everglades dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz”, which may soon close after a court order.
