Immigrant groups from New York and New Jersey went to the capital yesterday to pressure Congress to pass a law that would protect children with U.S. citizenship who are affected by the deportation of their parents.

The bill, known as the Child Citizen Protection Act (CCPA), was introduced this year by Congressman José E. Serrano (D-NY) in an effort to give immigration judges the necessary discretion to consider deportation cases that involve children born in the United States.

“If this law passes, my children, who are citizens of this country, will not have to grow up without a mother, they won’t drop out of school and they won’t be forced to go to a country they don’t know,” said Pauline N. of the delegation from New Jersey.

Manisha Vaze, from Families for Freedom, said the coalition had managed to meet with three senators and 22 members of Congress when searching for support for the bill. “They listened to stories of people affected by the roundups and deportations,” Vaze explained.

Juan Rodríguez, a New Jersey resident, stated that the group had received friendly attention from the legislators. “Personally, I have seen children join gangs or sell drugs, resentful that their parents have been deported,” he added.

The coalition visited Senators Charles Schumer (D-NY), and Robert Menéndez (D-NJ) and Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ).