We are Latinos and Hispanics and deserve to speak for ourselves. Not one of us can speak for the 56.6 million of us, but we might at least try to let a few speak.

As Donald Trump assumes power today on a platform which divided and at times enraged huge sections of the Hispanic population, I interviewed a range of them from across the country and let them have free rein to voice their expectations, hopes and disappointments.

Ray Pascual, 52, Miami. Cuban-born; Trump voter; works in the Miami County court system.

On immigration: When you start flooding the country with people from other countries, they don’t assimilate, they form their own enclaves. They isolate themselves. They don’t want to be Americans. At some point, you have to stop it to let those that are here become Americans.

When you come to this country, you should embrace it for what it is. You don’t have the chance to do that [with the way immigration is now]. Don’t come to my house to arrange my furniture.

On Obamacare: The only thing that affected us financially was the insurance. The economy hasn’t affected me because I work for the court so I work for the government. Obamacare affected us greatly. Before Obamacare, we were paying $6,000 for insurance – now it’s $10,000. When you’re middle class … that hurts. The rich don’t feel it because they can afford it. The middle class voted that way hoping to repeal it.

‘I lived a life of privilege in Peru, and became poor overnight’ Alonzo Reyna Rivarola, 26, from Lima, Peru. Daca-documented; Dream program coordinator at University of Utah. On Daca and his status: If Donald Trump chooses to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals executive order (Daca), he will directly impact the lives of so many families and people. It’s going to change the lives of people who are just here to do hard work and find ways of living. It’s scary. I benefit from that myself. If it’s gone, do I take my two degrees out of the country? Or do I stay and go back to working in a fast-food restaurant?

On the use of the term ‘illegals’: I hate using the word “illegal”. I actually had to live that experience and I am grateful for it because it made me realize the other side of the coin. It made me grow up as a person. This idea – of being undocumented – is so fluid. It’s a part of your identity, but it’s not entirely who we are. It can change so suddenly, by becoming a US citizen or a permanent resident, or if you choose to go back.

‘They’re making it seem like conservative women hate themselves’

Jess P, 22, Miami. Grad student in criminal justice; Trump voter

On why she voted for Trump: This election was really weird. Had Hillary not been the candidate, I probably would not have voted. But she’s such a corrupt individual that I could not sit it out. I had to vote. Their whole thing is that Trump is a racist and a sexist. You can play that card and I can see where the media is bombarding him, but the racist part I never understood. Especially when Hillary referred to young black males as “super predators”. She’s a soft bigot so the media throws it under the rug.

On whether she’s a feminist: That question irks me. Because I’m a woman, do you think I don’t want progress for us? They’re making it seem like conservative women hate themselves. And then they say: ‘Thank God you’re pretty.’ Is that my only saving grace?

My political views don’t dictate whether I’m a feminist or not. I don’t let my personal feelings dictate who I vote for. I look at a political platform and vote on that. If I voted on every comment that made me butt-hurt, I would never vote.

To vote on emotion is silly to me. If we were all recorded 24/7 we’d be screwed. I’m not making excuses for things he has said … but at the end of the day he’s not a politician. He doesn’t know how to be a robot. He has foot-in-mouth syndrome.

‘My situation is special because I’m pregnant’

Fernanda Muñoz, 26, Mexico DF, on visa (not a resident). Sociologist; moved in June 2016 to Watsonville, California; unable to vote

On immigrating: I came to this country in June 2016 with a tourist visa, with the goal of finding my mother and without knowing I was pregnant. I fear for my daughter who is going to be American – perhaps she will have better things than Mexico can give her. I fear that our family will be separated, or that I’ll have to go back home with an immigrant daughter. I feel that it’s impossible, but who knows.

On other Mexican immigrants: People that are documented do not encounter a lot of problems – of course, it’s different for those that come without passports or work permits. I know of a group of teenagers – between 15 and 22 years old – who came crossing the border, going through horrible things like “La Bestia” (a network of freight trains used to travel through Mexico up to the border, from which travellers are often thrown off at high speeds and killed). People like them usually get to the US in a horrible state. They work very hard, doing anything they can to earn money to live here and to send money to their families. They don’t leave their homes except to go to work ... They work so hard and they get discriminated [against] the most.

They have hard lives and little education and make some bad choices. I’ve seen some of them smoking marijuana. And for that, we all get categorized. We are many different social groups, but Trump has given us a name. Of course, we’re not all like that. We are many different social groups.

‘I lived through the social changes [in the late 60s]. The changes were positive for me’

Maria DeGiovanni, 73, San Francisco, California, and Rosario, Argentina. Retired teacher; voting information withheld

On Trump’s misogyny: I know how men really are. I’ve sat at dinner with Argentinian men before, and I have not heard many favorable ideas about a woman’s place in society even from very respectable, well-educated men.

This man [Trump] isn’t trained to be a politician, so I can’t judge him. I think the media have used his comments to defame him.

On retirement and health costs: If you don’t have savings, today as a retired person, you cannot live. Not with one party at the helm, or the other. You can’t buy anything. In Chile [where she has lived], retirement and retirement benefits are very strong. Here, with $1,000 or $2,000 a month, in San Francisco, you cannot live or have anything. Health insurance is extremely expensive. I go to the doctor and they charge me $356 per visit, for 15 minutes! I have it in my records. And I pay for good health insurance. Imagine someone comes with the same problem and no insurance … what happens to them? That can’t be so.

‘There’s nothing scarier than human hatred and ignorance’

Danny Gomez, 23, Brooklyn, New York, and Cartagena, Colombia. Clinton voter; musician

On voting: Personally, I voted keeping student loans in mind. I was a Bernie supporter first. This election didn’t come down to the economy for me, it came down to how I think people deserve to be treated and what that means for the future of this nation. We have gone backward – I was looking to the future of this country, not single issues like Obamacare, or jobs or Isis. I care about human rights –I thought we moved forward as a society when we legalized same-sex marriage but Trump’s election is a step backward.

On immigration as life and death: Literally, if these people are coming here, it’s because they have to. Some people don’t understand that, because they’ve never been hungry in their lives. They might be middle class, but they’ve had food on their plate and the opportunity to go to the public school. It’s literally life or death.

I bet you they’d be perfectly happy if they could stay with their families rather than having to work more than anyone else in the country to make a fourth of the amount. When you have experienced the struggle, you can relate.

‘I’m different from people here. It’s been difficult to find my chosen family, but they keep me grounded.’

Alejandro Cuadrado, 27, born in Texas to Salvadorian parents. Works in education in Iowa; Clinton voter

On the next four years: I have mixed emotions about the next four years. I do have the privilege of having some identities that do provide security for my stay here in the US. But I am also gay, and it’s still not fully accepted in this country.

And yet I worry more for the people that I love, my family. For me, marriage rights isn’t something super important. I’m most worried about [the fate of] black people, the registration of Arabic and Muslim people Trump mentioned, or stop-and-frisk practices. That’s where I’m more worried – not to neglect the fight that the LGBTQ community has to put on.

On the hatred he experiences: Where I work, the majority of people are white – from Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois. People in the midwest are being isolated from diversity, and I definitely experience negativity. Twice at our institutions we had posters on campus that said things like: “White people, don’t be afraid, let’s not be the minority any more, be proud of your white heritage.” It isn’t a nice feeling, but I put up with it for my family. They’re what’s keeping me here.

‘The struggle of immigration is the foundation of this country. It is what had made America great’

Juan Guerrero, 22, Queens, New York. Colombian background; abstained from voting; works in business development

On Trump’s effect on America: Trump idolizing Putin, I don’t think that’s right. That guy’s a bigot. That’s not right. Trump being president taints our reputation – it highlights the worst things about the US that people have always thought. It proves them to be right. When you support someone, you have to understand you are with all their beliefs.

On fear: The next four years of my life will be tense, more anxious. You never know what can happen. It’s never felt this divisive. It’s all about fear. There’s a very specific message that’s worded very specifically from the “alt-right”. Had Hillary Clinton won, no one would be worried about this. We wouldn’t be afraid for marginalized groups.

People come here to achieve dreams, to escape a dead end. And you get someone like Trump denouncing them. My grandma came here illegally from Colombia through the Rio Grande. To see what she accomplished, seeing what is possible in my life because of her … it makes you appreciate that journey.

‘My mother had a saying – dime con quién andas y te diré quien eres’

Lourdes Montiel, 52, Miami. Born in Castro’s Cuba; daughter of a revolutionary; high school teacher

On her fears: When you have Steve Bannon as your chief strategist, that tells me something about who you are … My fear is the way that he’s treated the press. One of the functions of journalism is to report on what’s happening in the government. If we don’t have access to that, that’s a problem. I do fear for civil liberties. We’re so worried about the terrorists, we’re going to end up destroying each other at this rate.

On American-ness: We were refugees. At this point, I consider myself an American – Cuban-American – but America is the country that has my loyalty. Every American is a hyphen. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s what makes our country so unique, we can take these cultures. Instead of a melting pot, it’s a salad, you put everything all together and it has one taste but still individual tastes. No one is losing their taste …

Luis Fernando Perez, 28, Puerto Rican in Richmond, Virginia. JMU graduate; librarian and bike delivery man; navy family; Clinton voter

On his next four years: When you asked me if I was scared for these next four years and I didn’t answer, it’s because I realize that I’m insulated. I’ll be fine. I grew up in the suburbs, I went to college, I’ve worked desk jobs. I share cultural aspects of American culture; I won’t be affected like the people that Trump has targeted. Personally, I can probably float by. As far as all the rhetoric that’s floated around, I won’t be worse off. But I know a lot of people will be affected, like Syrian refugees coming here.

I’m not trying to show myself as a selfless person, but if I’m not personally affected I do worry about a culture shift where people are OK with not associating with other and staying with their kind of people.

On race in Latino culture: In Hispanic culture, there’s a whole spectrum of light and dark. In Puerto Rico, the majority identify as white on the census; that certainly isn’t that case on the ground. People in Puerto Rico call me gringo [usually associated with American whiteness], which is funny because I’m a little darker than most of them. Even my cousins that grew up in Puerto Rico have said that to me – and they’re way lighter than I am.

‘Nowadays, you really gotta watch out what you say, and that’s ticked off people a lot’

Rafael Mateu, 23, Caracas, Venezuela, and Tallahassee, Florida. Works in sales at Vivint Security; Trump supporter (could not vote)

On foreign policy: I think Obama was a pacifist. He likes to remain good with every group. Obviously, political correctness is a huge factor … being sensitive to Muslim Americans, I understand all that, but I want a cabinet that’s tough; I want the troops in there for the next three to five years. It has to be done. Sure, 9/11 was during Bush’s term but terrorism has grown like crazy in the last eight years. I didn’t see that in the Bush years. It’s a growing issue because I sis … their confidence is through the roof and Obama let that happen.

On political correctness: Of course, I don’t hate gays and I don’t hate black people but once in awhile I make a race-related joke. Who doesn’t? Nowadays, you really gotta watch out what you say, and that’s ticked off people a lot.