Pontiac is not Detroit, City Councilman Mikal Goodman noted. It's not Los Angeles or Chicago. But it is a place, he said, where national immigration politics are hitting home.

The city has seen rapidly increasing deportations, Goodman said at an immigrant rights rally in his city on Saturday.

"It's very easy for everyone to feel these things are happening in a vacuum," he said, but in reality, the impact of the Trump administration's efforts to deport millions of people in the country without documentation has hit places like Pontiac the hardest.

A few dozen people gathered at a parking lot next to a Latino church just on the edge of Goodman's ward Saturday afternoon, holding signs of gratitude for diversity in what was dubbed the "Melt ICE! Freeze the Fear! Free Our Community!" rally.

"It is deeply important we show solidarity," Goodman said.

They also showed strong opposition to Immigrations and Customs Enforcement working in their community.

Elida Reyes, founder of an immigration advocacy organization called Community Aid For Empowerment (CAFE), said she offers rides to school for kids whose parents are afraid to leave the house because of their immigration status. Even U.S. citizens like herself are scared, she said.

Her church used to be filled with Latino families, she said.

"I watched as the Venezuelan families were slowly disappearing," she said, because they had been deported. One apartment building in town had half its residents deported, she said.

"This is a travesty, what's going on," she said.

The Trump administration has said it is deporting only violent criminals, and that the deportations are necessary to keep communities safe.

"Many of these aliens unlawfully within the United States present significant threats to national security and public safety, committing vile and heinous acts against innocent Americans," the White House said in a January statement. "Others are engaged in hostile activities, including espionage, economic espionage, and preparations for terror-related activities."

National news outlet ProPublica, however, has reported that immigration agents have detained at least 130 American citizens.

The Pontiac immigration advocates also pushed back on the Trump administration's narrative.

Alexis Huyck, a member of CAFE's leadership board, said at the rally that many of the people she has talked to who have been detained were not criminals and in many cases had paperwork on them to show their residency status. It didn't matter, she said.

As a result, Huyck said, even those with permission to live and work in the United States are afraid.

"It seems like it's paranoia, but it's justified," she said.

Goodman said he's seen the impact as city councilman who represents a largely Latino district.

"It's been really easy to watch the decrease in community participation," he said.

Goodman said there are some things that are difficult to get done on such a local level, like a sanctuary city policy, when the city uses the county sheriff's office for law enforcement.

But there are small things the city can and should do, he said, like making sure city-controlled properties, like libraries, can be safe places for all residents.

"I think it's something we should quickly address," he said.

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