The Republican Party of Florida took down a new line of merchandise Saturday that had been promoting a new migrant detention center dubbed “Deportation Depot.”
The Florida GOP released merchandise on Friday, including baseball caps, coffee mugs, and T-shirts with “THE DEPORT DEPOT” branding and orange block lettering, similar to the logo of the home improvement store Home Depot. But two days later, after an objection from Home Depot, the party took down the merchandise.
“We don’t allow any organization to use our branding or logo for their commercial purposes, and we did not approve this use,” Beth Marlowe, a Home Depot spokeswoman, said in a statement to the Washington Post. She added that the company had reached out to the Florida Republican Party.
Florida Republican Party chairman Evan Power told the Tampa Bay Times he believed “The Deport Depot” merchandise was protected by prior case law, in which “no reasonable person would think it’s the logo of a company.”
“It’s proving a point by highlighting a recognizable symbol,” Power said of the party’s logo.
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) announced plans last week to turn a state prison, the Baker Correctional Institution in northern Florida, into a migrant detention facility he called “Deportation Depot.”
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His announcement comes after he authorized another migrant detention center dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz” in Everglades National Park. The state Republican Party and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier released an “Alligator Alcatraz” line of merchandise, which is still for sale.
“Deportation Depot” also comes as Immigration and Customs Enforcement has carried out controversial immigration raids in Home Depot parking lots. A June raid at a Los Angeles Home Depot parking lot sparked large protests, which the White House looked to tamp down by deploying the National Guard, despite objections from state leaders.
