Clyde Butcher deeply understands the wild solitude of the Everglades. Those who don’t know the system as intimately have recently described it with fear — an uninhabitable, desolate mess, dangerous and suitable for a prison. But the iconic Everglades photographer, known for his sweeping black-and-white landscapes, knows better. He speaks with reverence of rare alligator encounters in a thriving, complex ecosystem kept in delicate balance by water — a lifesource that sustains the southern half of Florida.
The detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz” stands in sharp contrast to the beloved wilderness Clyde has spent 40 years documenting. Erected unceremoniously by the state of Florida at the federal government’s behest, the camp was built with no regard for the foundational laws that protect our country’s air, water, wildlife and public lands or the wide-ranging impacts to the fragile environment surrounding it.
The Everglades already face enormous pressures from overdevelopment, pollution and climate change. That’s why taxpayers have invested billions in the world’s largest ecosystem restoration project. Building a detention center here undermines those efforts and puts this priceless wilderness at even greater risk.
“I’m trying to get people to understand that the Everglades is a unique, special place… Let’s save the Everglades, OK? We need to rescue it. That’s what Friends of the Everglades is trying to do,” Clyde said.
In August, Friends of the Everglades launched the Everglades Defense Fund to fuel our landmark lawsuit against “Alligator Alcatraz” and protect this irreplaceable ecosystem from other destructive proposals. We’re honored to have the support of Clyde and his family in this battle.
Stand with us and Clyde Butcher by making a donation today.
