Mayors of big cities across the US have appealed to Donald Trump to let child immigrants stay in the country, go to school and not live in fear of deportation.

During a meeting with Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, president-elect Mr Trump was handed a letter signed by 15 mayors, asking him to keep accepting renewals and applications for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

"[…] DACA helps ensure that young people that were brought to the United States before they turned 16, and are actively seeking higher education, working or engaged in military service, can stay in their homes and communities without fear of deportation," the letter read.

It was signed by mayors including Bill de Blasio from New York, Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles and Megan Barry of Nashville.

The letter was handed over the same day that Time magazine published an interview with Mr Trump, where he said illegal immigrants were "finished".

"They come from Central America. They’re tougher than any people you’ve ever met. They’re killing and raping everybody out there. They’re illegal. And they are finished."

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Mr Trump has vowed to deport between two and three million illegal immigrants as soon as he enters the White House.

"My grandfather came to this city [Chicago] as a 13-year-old 100 years ago," said Chicago mayor, Mr Emanuel, after his meeting with Mr Trump in Manhattan.

"Chicago was a sanctuary city for my grandfather. His grandson today is the mayor of this city, which is a testament to the values and ideals of being in America."

"I was clear where I stood and where other mayors stood on immigrants, that we welcome them because they are achieving and striving for the American dream," he added.

Nearly 742,000 undocumented children have gone through the DACA program since it started in 2012. They paid fees, the letter said, gave their fingerprints and went through background checks.

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South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham asked Mr Trump to consider ending DACA, but the mayors said they were encouraged that the president-elect met with recipients of the original DREAM Act in 2013 at his office, listening to their stories and telling them: "You’ve convinced me."

As reported by Buzzfeed, the businessman told the group of activists three years ago: "You know, the truth is I have a lot of illegals working for me in Miami. You know in Miami, my golf course is tended by all these Hispanics — if it wasn’t for them my lawn wouldn’t be the lawn it is; it’s the best lawn."

In their letter, the mayors argued that most of the DACA children have contributed to the economy, have studied or worked in the US, and that 6 per cent of the children have even started their own businesses. Many of them learn to drive and become "responsible, insured" drivers, and enlist in crucial military programs that require knowledge of foreign languages.

Scrapping the act would, the mayors argued, lead to a loss of $9.9 billion in tax contributions over the next four years and a loss of more than $433.4 billion from US GDP over the same period.

Mr de Blasio also met the president-elect at Trump Tower last month, urging him not to reintroduce the controversial policing method of "stop and frisk" which was carried out disproportionately on people of colour.