As a “citizen of the world,” Jacinto Alfaro said he isn’t too concerned about President Donald Trump’s proposed mass deportation campaign and anti-immigrant rhetoric.

Alfaro, a 40-year-old delivery company worker, came to the United States more than 25 years ago, fleeing the civil war in El Salvador. He’s experienced political upheaval and racism before.

“We are easy prey for him, but I think we have to survive and learn and the most important thing is that it makes us stronger,” Alfaro said. 

Alfaro was just one of dozens attending a packed “know your rights” forum in North Las Vegas, led by Assemblywoman Cinthia Moore (D-North Las Vegas), Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford, Sen. Edgar Flores (D-Las Vegas) and Southern Nevada Deputy Secretary of State Ruben Rodriguez. Organizers advised attendees on what to do if immigration officials appeared at their house or workplace and reiterated government policies surrounding immigration and deportation.

But Alfaro and several of the half dozen attendees The Indy spoke to at the event said despite Trump’s anti-immigration rhetoric, they weren’t panicking about Trump’s agenda — especially considering that they “survived” his first administration and they consider much of his agenda to be impractical. 

The implications of Trump’s hard-line immigration agenda, which includes a mass deportation campaign and suspending asylum, could have an especially pronounced effect on Nevada, where about 1 in 5 residents is foreign-born. Nevada has the largest per capita undocumented population of any state and the largest share of mixed-status families in the nation. Immigration advocates have warned that in addition to separating families, Trump’s agenda could be widely disruptive to Nevada’s economy and cultural fabric. 

Nevada officials have expressed doubts about the practicality of Trump’s immigration agenda. Just last week, Gov. Joe Lombardo told reporters that he doesn’t believe mass deportation is an “appropriate policy,” saying that it will take an “exorbitant amount of time” and citing staffing issues with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Meanwhile, Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV), who is in charge of the appropriations subcommittee that oversees the Department of Homeland Security, has said that even with more funding, it would take time to build the infrastructure needed for deportation. 

Given that, Amodei said he doesn’t believe undocumented people are under immediate threat. 

Still, organizers at the Thursday forum cautioned people not to allow immigration officials into their home even if the person answering is a legal resident. If they live in a mixed-status family, they could put others in their household at risk, said Flores.

Even if ICE officers appear with a warrant, Flores reminded the audience that they can always ask to speak with an attorney first just to confirm that that document is valid and signed by a judge.

“Keep calm,” Flores cautioned. 

Maria Guadalupe Arreola, 70, said she is most worried about her niece who is DREAMer, a recipient of the President Barack Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program that gave temporary protections to people brought to the country illegally as children. 

She doesn’t think many of Trump’s proposals, such as his proposal to get rid of birthright citizenship, will come to pass, but is still uneasy. 

“I am a bit worried about the separation of families with mass deportations. The majority of us come to work, to look for a better future. We’re not bad people,” Arreola said.  

Since Trump’s term kicked off this past Monday, advocacy groups and legal aid organizations throughout Nevada have begun to host a flurry of events, including protests against mass deportations and information sessions for undocumented immigrants. On Tuesday night, the Nevada Immigrant Coalition and other local organizations held a rally outside the federal courthouse in Las Vegas. 

Many of the organizers at that event seemed cautiously optimistic. Jesse Rivera, a 21-year-old UNLV student and intern at the nonprofit Somos Votantes, said that he is concerned about himself and his family, who immigrated from Mexico, and the implications of Trump's blocked executive order.

Despite this, Rivera said he remains hopeful that with organizing, the community will be able to overcome perceived threats of deportation and hateful rhetoric. 

“You just got to keep working,” Rivera said. “You can’t let this weigh on you and deter you from working.”