Immigrant rights advocates and religious leaders are congregating today in front of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's San Francisco office to protest recent raids in the Bay Area.

Labor union members, workers, students and several community organizations are also attending the protest to call for an end to the raids, which they say tear families apart and criminalize work.

"As people of faith, we stand in support of our immigrant sisters and brothers," the Rev. Brenda Vaca, of San Francisco's Nueva Vida Ministries, said in a statement. "We also call for transformation of Immigration and Customs Enforcement from being an institution of fear and terror to a public institution that promotes and respects the rights and dignity of people within our borders."

The protest was prompted by raids Friday by ICE agents during which 63 employees of a Bay Area Mexican restaurant chain were arrested for allegedly being in the country illegally.

Employees at 11 Taqueria El Balazo locations were taken into custody to be photographed, fingerprinted and processed, according to ICE officials.

Virginia Kice, a spokeswoman for ICE, said the raids were part of an ongoing criminal investigation.

"It's our responsibility to enforce our nation's immigration and customs law and we'll continue to do that," Kice said.

By Saturday all but 10 of those detained during Friday's raids had been released pending future immigration proceedings, according to Kice.

A suspected gang member was still detained, as well as five individuals who refused the option of electronic monitoring and three juveniles, she said.