Saturday evening, several Dayton human rights organizations will host a special vigil.
It's called the United in Light Immigration Justice Vigil, honoring immigrants who have been detained by ICE agents and separated from their families.
The event begins at 5 p.m. at the International Peace Museum on Ludlow Street in Downtown Dayton.
At 6 p.m. participants will march to Dayton’s Courthouse Square.
The Miami Valley Immigration Coalition, Dayton United for Human Rights and the International Peace Museum are sponsoring this vigil.
Vigil organizers say they want to highlight the growing number of immigrants who are detained in the United States, particularly inside the Butler County detention center.
20-year-old Jose Chavez is studying physics at the University of Dayton. This Houston native says he’s proud to be a Mexican American but he’s also worried ICE agents could mistakenly pick him up in a general sweep.
"For all I know I could be walking to Brown Street to go to Chipotle, an armored vehicle stops, grabs me and pick me up and that's it. Like I don't know how my family's gonna find out where I'm at. I don't know how they're going to figure out if I'm a citizen or not," he said. "I've heard stories where people are stuck in these detention detention centers for months on end, even though they are U.S. citizens. So it's just very scary for me."
