Following the election of Donald Trump, many Mexican-Americans are worried about how the president-elect’s proposed immigration overhaul, if implemented, might affect them.
In a recent video posted to his office's Facebook page, Juan Manuel Solana Morales, the Mexican Consul in Detroit, addressed those fears.
"You are not alone, we are with you," he said in the one-minute video.
Morales sat down with Stateside to discuss the video, and his message for worried Mexican-Americans living in Michigan. He said that it’s important for immigrants to understand their rights, regardless of their citizenship status.
“The problem is that any time there’s insecurity and the information’s not clear, there’s a lot of people that may try to take advantage of them, or there’s a lot of faulty information around that can make a lot of people scared,” Morales told us.
Noting that campaign promises often diverge from the policies adopted later on, Morales urged patience until the intentions of the incoming Trump administration become clear.
“We are not going to try to overreact before things happen,” he said.
Morales also spoke about the recent spike in hate crimes and harassment here in Michigan. He said that the consulate set up a special hotline for Mexican-Americans with concerns about their safety or their legal standing. The number for that hotline is 1-877-632-6678.
Listen to our full interview with Morales above.
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