Hundreds gather in Chicago to protest Trump DACA decision

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CHICAGO (AP) - Hundreds of protesters gathered in Chicago's Federal Plaza to condemn the Trump administration for ending the Obama-era program protecting from deportation young immigrants brought to the U.S. as children.

After gathering Tuesday evening, the demonstrators marched through downtown Chicago to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office. The march forced the diversion of traffic from an entrance to an expressway.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions said DACA, started by President Barack Obama in 2012, was an unconstitutional exercise of executive power.

Almost 800,000 young immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children or overstayed their visas could see their lives upended with the ending of DACA.

The Trump administration and other DACA opponents argue it is up to Congress to decide how to deal with such immigrants. The administration has challenged Congress to pass a law by March 5.