Children and teens from across New Jersey held vigils to advocate for keeping families together, a halt to roundups, arrests and deportations, and to restore family values to immigration policies and legislation.

"I want to ask the authorities to return arrested parents to their children," said Lumila López, 13, one of the participants at a vigil held in Jersey City.

The vigils are part of a campaign called "We are a human family" organized by associations of religious leaders and groups that defend the rights of detained immigrants.

The advocates maintain that the deportation of immigrants who are parents is unjust, whether their children are undocumented or citizens, not only because it splits up families, but also because it permanently traumatizes the children.

The vigils were held in Bridgeton, Dumont, Freehold, Keyport, Highland Park, Montclair, Morristown and Newark, with the goal of sending a message to members of Congress to implement immigration reform.

The vigils also push for the passing of the Child Citizen Protection Act, sponsored by Congressman José Serrano (D-NY District 16), which would allow immigration judges to use their discretion to evaluate deportation cases where children with American citizenship are involved.

It is estimated that there are about four million children born in this country who come from families where the parents may not have legal status. There are also an additional million and a half children who came to the United States as undocumented immigrants and have remained, but whose younger siblings are U.S. citizens.

María Vargas, a member of the Wind of the Spirit Immigrant Resource Center in Morristown, NJ, said that the town has been experiencing "a wave of worry because the mayor has threatened us by signing the 287 (g) program [Section 287(g) adds the performance of immigration officer functions by state officers and employees, to the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)]. So we held a vigil to tell the people that we don't want this program because it isn't necessary."

"The policies designed to improve public security are dismantling families and leaving children abandoned," said Chia Chia Wang, of the American Friends Service Committee, in Newark.