The latest dream of the “freedom city” proponents: Transform the island prison into a “migrant proving ground” that doubles as an American D
Laurie Clarke at TNR (05.11.2025):
The radical libertarian city builders of the tech-bro set have an audacious new proposal: They want to convert Guantánamo Bay, host to the infamous prison, into the high-tech charter city of their wildest imaginations, which will double as a “proving ground” for migrants seeking to enter the United States. The Charter Cities Institute, or CCI, which has lobbied the Trump administration on setting up so-called freedom cities in the U.S, suggests the president take advantage of Guantánamo’s special legal status to convert the controversial detention camp into “a beacon of 21st-century prosperity.” CCI promotes the worldwide development of charter cities, semiautonomous zones designed to be exempt from the regulations and taxes of the nations in which they’re located. The freedom cities idea pushed by CCI and other groups fits this mold: tech hubs that would be exempt from some federal laws. Adherents to this movement argue that these arrangements drive innovation and prosperity. But as New Republic contributor J.J. Anselmi explained back in March, there’s not much innovation to be had—freedom cities are little more than spit-shined reboots of the “company towns” of yesteryear. Nevertheless, the president has proven receptive to the idea, and the groups have claimed that his inner circle is engaging with their proposals. Now they’ve come up with an eye-catching new site for him to consider. “By transforming Guantanamo Bay into a charter city, the U.S. government can catalyze economic growth, manage immigration flows, and project America’s unparalleled capacity for innovation and statecraft—all while requiring no legislation,” claims the CCI proposal from earlier this year. “This parcel of federal land on the Caribbean coastline presents a striking opportunity to reimagine American governance and reassert U.S. global leadership.” CCI argues in its proposal that the substantial development it plans to unleash would bypass the “multi-tiered hurdles” of “zoning boards, county regulations, city councils, and environmental legal frameworks” that the group claims is holding back similar charter city projects in the U.S. It further argues that this relaxed regulatory environment would encourage cutting-edge R&D in areas like biotech, artificial intelligence, and nuclear microreactors, likening the new enterprise to an American Dubai, capable of attracting billions of dollars in capital over the next five to 20 years.
More controversially, CCI proposes to do something very akin to what the Emiratis are best known for doing—erecting a labor economy that more readily resembles modern-day slavery. The big selling point for its GITMO haven suggests that the hypothetical city could house migrants who wish to move to the U.S., keeping them under surveillance for a “probationary period” while “evaluating their contributions to the local economy and society.”
[...] Charter cities have long been a fascination of Silicon Valley’s libertarian right. Tech billionaire Peter Thiel was an early investor in “seasteading,” the dream of seaborne libertarian enclaves floating beyond sovereign jurisdiction. In recent years, high-profile Silicon Valley investors Marc Andreessen and Balaji Srinivasan have joined the movement, which has turned its attention to land-based fiefdoms. CCI promotes the establishment of these kinds of projects worldwide. It was an early champion of Próspera, a charter city in Roatán, Honduras, which is currently engaged in a legal battle with the Honduran government over its continued existence. It is also involved in several city projects in Africa, including one in Nigeria called Itana. Próspera and Itana have both received funding from Pronomos Capital, a venture capital firm backed by Thiel and Andreessen, whose right-leaning Silicon Valley faction has grown in influence since Trump entered the White House.
CCI told The New Republic that it had “spoken to staff within the administration and both aisles of Congress” about freedom cities and issues relating to housing and economic dynamism but said it wasn’t actively lobbying for freedom cities. However, CCI founder Mark Lutter is still listed online as part of the Frontier Foundation team, a nonprofit advocating for freedom cities. CCI didn’t comment on whether the Guantánamo proposal had been presented to anyone in government. Guantánamo experts aren’t convinced this plan will ever come to fruition. “I don’t think there is anything inherently wrong with using space for a more productive, beneficial purpose than a military base,” said Joseph Margulies, professor of the practice of government at Cornell University and author of Guantánamo and the Abuse of Presidential Power. “But what’s troublesome is the idea that you are seeking a place that is beyond the law. That is the perennial attraction of Guantánamo, right?”
The libertarian-aligned Charter Cities Institute has some dastardly plans for Gitmo: turn it into a techbro hellhole.
