At the Mexican consulate in St. Paul, Caroline Brown told families what to do during run-ins with immigration agents: Don't open the door unless agents slip a warrant under it, and don't answer questions if detained.
"With the president we have, it's very important to know your rights," Brown, a case manager of Zimmer Law Group, said in Spanish.
Along with its usual work of issuing passports and birth certificates, the consulate has unleashed an unprecedented effort this year to respond to immigration changes under the Trump administration.
As part of a $50 million Mexican government initiative, the consulate teamed up with attorneys to offer workshops about immigration enforcement and screenings to check whether some Mexican citizens could gain legal status.
The consulate has chipped in for a nonprofit's campaign to urge permanent residents to seek citizenship. It lobbied the state's congressional delegation to support a citizenship path for youths who arrived illegally as children.
Consul Gerardo Guerrero says the effort is in keeping with a more muscular, politically active role for Mexican consulates that predates Trump's election.
"We are not trying to get involved in the politics of the United States," he said. But, he added, "It's the moral duty of the Mexican government to support its people."
The St. Paul consulate estimates about 185,000 Mexican citizens live in Minnesota. An estimated 60,000 of them lack legal status.