Following in the footsteps of their food truck brethren, Chicago's street cart vendors are pushing for legalization of their trade.

Currently, vendors may sell only raw, uncut produce or prepackaged frozen desserts, with the cost of licenses ranging from $100 to $275. That means tamale stands, "brew hubs" peddling coffee, and even the selling of a cut fruit salad is illegal.

A coalition called Street Vendors for Justice has drafted an ordinance that will bring vendors out of the "shadow economy and into the legitimate economy," said Beth Kregor, director of the Institute for Justice Clinic on Entrepreneurship, which is championing the cause.

Read more at DNAinfo.com