Immigrant advocates held a rally Tuesday at Stamford's Mill River Park against President Donald Trump's announcement that he will end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

Those at the rally, held at a high-rise condo that bears the president's name, say their message is that they will not live in fear.

The DACA program protects young immigrants brought into the country illegally as children. It also grants work permits to undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children.

According to advocacy group Connecticut Students for a DREAM, about 8,000 people in the state are among the 800,000 nationwide protected under DACA. Many say they are unsure of what will happen next.

"This is going to be an eye-opener for everyone in Congress right now," says Guadalupe Ramirez, of Bridgeport. "Hopefully (it will) get them to do something for the 'dreamers.'"

Elsewhere, protests were held in New York, Washington, D.C. and across the country shortly after the Trump administration announced the end of DACA, but delayed any potential immigration action for six months in order to give Congress time to act legislatively.

Democrats, including Connecticut's entire congressional delegation, blasted the move and called on their Republican colleagues to pass legislation allowing undocumented young people brought to the U.S. by their parents to continue to live in the country.

The DACA program was put in place during the Obama administration and just saw its fifth anniversary three weeks ago.