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Key Points
- United States President Donald Trump says he has directed staff to reopen Alcatraz prison.
- The infamous prison has been closed for more than 60 years.
- Alcatraz Island is located approximately 2km off the San Francisco coast.
More than 60 years after Alcatraz closed, United States President Donald Trump has said he is directing his government to reopen and rebuild the former prison for “America’s most ruthless and violent offenders”.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote: “When we were a more serious nation, in times past, we did not hesitate to lock up the most dangerous criminals, and keep them far away from anyone they could harm.”
“The reopening of Alcatraz will serve as a symbol of law, order, and justice,” he wrote.
Trump’s directive to reopen the former infamous prison marks the latest move in his broader effort to overhaul how and where federal prisoners and immigration detainees are held.
He told reporters over the weekend it was just an idea he had because of “radicalised judges” who want to ensure migrants facing deportation receive due process.
A brief history of Alcatraz
Alcatraz Island, located approximately 2km off the San Francisco coast, has served in different capacities: a military fort (1850s), a military prison (1868), and finally became a federal penitentiary for people convicted of serious crimes (1934–1963).
The California Gold Rush, the resulting boom in San Francisco’s growth, and the need to protect San Francisco Bay led the US Army to build a fortress at the top of the island in the early 1850s.
The prison was a maximum-security, minimum-privilege prison opened to deal with the “most incorrigible inmates in federal prisons”, according to the US Federal Bureau of Prisons.
Considered inescapable due to the strong ocean currents and Pacific Ocean waters that surround it, Alcatraz was known as ‘The Rock’ and housed some of the nation’s most notorious criminals, including gangster Al Capone and George “Machine Gun” Kelly.
Since then, Alcatraz has become a cultural icon and a Hollywood obsession, inspiring filmmakers for decades.
Notable films set in the notorious prison include Birdman of Alcatraz (1962), Escape from Alcatraz (1979) and The Rock (1996), a fictional hostage thriller starring Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage.
It is now one of San Francisco’s most popular tourist destinations, operated by the National Park Service (NPS), and is a designated National Historic Landmark.
Why was Alcatraz shut down?
Despite its reputation, Alcatraz was expensive and impractical to run.
The remote location made everything from food to fresh water dependent on shipments.
In 1963, the then-US attorney-general Robert F Kennedy ordered it closed due to high costs and deteriorating infrastructure.
Six years after the infamous prison closed its doors, hundreds of Native American activists and students occupied Alcatraz Island to raise awareness of continued Native American oppression, according to NPS.
The activists under the banner of the ‘Indians of all tribes’ used Alcatraz as a platform for Indigenous rights. The occupation lasted 19 months and is recognised as a key moment in Native American civil rights history.
Alcatraz as a tourist destination
Today, Alcatraz is one of California’s most popular tourist sites, drawing over 1.4 million visitors annually.
The island features preserved cells, solitary blocks, guard towers, and guided tours led by former correctional officers.
Along with historical exhibits, the island also hosts contemporary art installations and commemorative events that mark its complex past.
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