EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – The pulse of El Paso’s immigrant community can be felt through the calls streaming into a small white “BNHR” building on Piedras Street over the past few days.

There’s the panicked pregnant woman worried she would be detained and deported when she showed up at the hospital to have her baby. There are the parents of undocumented children wondering if they should stop sending their children to El Paso public schools.

All these calls are a sign that President Trump’s executive orders on immigration enforcement and border security are sowing panic not just among migrants, but also on their American spouses, children and friends, says Border Network for Human Rights Executive Director Fernando Garcia.

“For many years schools, hospitals and churches were considered sensitive places by (immigration agencies). But this administration is ending that; they want carte blanche to go after everyone,” Garcia said.

The long-time El Paso activist on Thursday urged migrants and mixed-status families to put their fears aside and be aware they have legal rights amid threats of deportations.

“In this country, you have rights regardless of immigration status. You have the right to not let (immigration officers) into your home if they don’t have a court order, a warrant. You have the right to remain silent. If you are detained, you have the right to not sign any document. It is not BNHR saying that; it is the U.S. Constitution saying that,” Garcia said.

Along those lines, BNHR is starting a legal awareness campaign in immigrant neighborhoods and preparing community members to document any immigration-enforcement activity they witness.

“We have scheduled a community education project on constitutional rights. As we speak, we have scheduled in El Paso, southern New Mexico, Albuquerque, Del Rio and Eagle Pass more than 30 community forums in which we are going to be talking about constitutional rights. We are also doing house-by-house drills for families to have the tools to exercise their rights,” Garcia said.

The activist said many Americans don’t realize how important immigrants are to the economy and society. They are one of the pillars of strategic industry such as agriculture, construction and health care. And contrary to political discourse, few are criminals, he said.

BNHR was not the only group to protest Trump’s executive orders in El Paso on Thursday.

In a news conference by religious leaders, El Paso Catholic Diocese Bishop Mark J. Seitz said the community will continue to welcome immigrants regardless of status.

“In this time when so much fear has been generated by the unbalanced statements against you, we will not lose sight of who we know you are. We will continue to walk with you,” Seitz said.

The Rev. Samantha Singleton-Sherman, associate pastor of Spirit of the Lord Ministries, said the church has a duty to protect the disenfranchised and would continue to do so.

“As a pastor, our job is to ensure that the disenfranchised have the ability to walk into a place of worship and regain their emotional and their spiritual strength,” she said.