Local immigrant advocacy groups shift focus amid fear of increased ICE activity [Video]

PORTLAND, Maine — Since the Trump administration took office, fear among Maine’s immigrant communities has been steadily rising. Advocacy groups are stepping up efforts to provide reassurance and essential resources, even as enforcement actions increase.

Presente! Maine, a Portland-based organization supporting displaced Afro and Indigenous Latines, has been adapting quickly. Where they once hosted twice-monthly food pantries at their offices, they now deliver groceries directly to community members’ homes.

“Now we are delivering groceries twice a month to our community members, right to their homes,” Keyko Torres, Presente! Maine’s Community Health and Wellness Director, said.

Torres says the organization began shifting services after Trump signed executive orders aimed at cracking down on immigration. Although most of the people Presente! Maine assists are documented or seeking asylum, the anxiety in the community is …