New York: Street Vendors show solidarity for hurricane victims on 14th November

Brothers and sisters,

We are very happy to celebrate with you the first ever International Street Vendors’ Day. We congratulate StreetNet on ten years of fighting for justice and human rights.

Two weeks ago, our own city was hit by a terrible hurricane that killed many people and drove many others from their homes. It has affected the livelihoods of many of our members. However, other people suffered worse. We decided to spend International Street Vendor Day by taking a boat to one of the disaster areas of our city and volunteering to help the survivors there. We helped prepare food and sort used clothing. We are also donating money we collected at our last meeting. 

This action reminded us how street vendors help our city every day, in ways large and small. We look forward to celebrating November 14^th for many years to come, with our brother and sister vendors from across the US and around the world.

Sean Basinski, Director

Street Vendor Project (New York)

November 14, 2012