LI Hispanic community responds to Trump's election

The election of Donald Trump to the office of president of the United States shocked millions of Americans across the nation, especially Latino immigrants. News 12 Long Island was at Make The Road

News 12 Staff

Nov 10, 2016, 3:20 AM

Updated 2,956 days ago

Share:

The election of Donald Trump to the office of president of the United States shocked millions of Americans across the nation, especially Latino immigrants.
News 12 Long Island was at Make The Road New York in Brentwood, a not-for-profit which advocates for Latino communities, to ask what they thought about President-elect Trump.
Michelle Contreras says her parents came from El Salvador and risked their lives so that she would have a better life. She says her mother became a citizen in 2005 which gave her a huge opportunity to accomplish many things.
However, Contreras says she and her family are now fearful that could all change once Donald Trump takes office:
"It's very hard to think that someone would want to deport 11 million immigrants - separate them from their families - how can you separate kids from their parents?" she asks.
Contreras is not alone. Trump's rhetoric during the campaign, which included building a wall across the Mexican border, put many in the immigrant population on high alert.
Many Hispanic families made their way to Make The Road New York on Wednesday hoping to find some guidance about what will happen once Donald Trump takes office.
The group put out a press release Wednesday, calling Donald Trump's victory one of the darkest of days for their community. 
Contreras says despite everything, she still believes in the American dream.



"Yes, we are going to have to work so much harder than before, but I feel we are going to have positive results," she says.