Street Vendors of NYC

1. Street Vendors of NYC

2. A little bit of history… • Incredibly enough, this has been common practice for many generations all over the world! • Small fish were a street food in Greece • Evidence of large number of street vendors were discovered during the excavation of Pompeii. • Street food was commonly utilized by poor urban residents of ancient Rome with chickpea soup, bread, and grain paste being some of the common meals. • In China, where street foods generally catered to the poor, wealthy residents would send their servants to buy street foods and bring meals • In Renaissance Turkey many crossroads saw vendors selling “fragrant bites of hot meat”, including chicken and lamb.

3. Believe it or not, the hot dog stands weren’t the first in business… • As of 1707, after previous restrictions that had limited their operating hours, street food vendors had been banned in NYC. • Many African American women made their living selling street foods in America in the 18th and 19th centuries. • They sold products ranging from fruit, cakes, and nuts in Savannah, GA, to coffee, biscuits, pralines and other sweets in New Orleans.

4. Street vendors in NYC have been present throughout much of our history. 1906

5. With the time…Our city has become this…

6. Notice any differences?!

8. John Doe Selling I <3 NY shirts

12. Street Vendor Project… because they matter! • With its increasing popularity, many cases of injustices have also taken place. • Initiatives like “The Street Vendor Project”, have been created to correct the social and economic injustice faced by these hard working entrepreneurs. • They hold clinics to educate them about their legal rights • They organize vendors to participate in the political process that determines their fate. • They engage in advocacy to help policy makers and the public understand the important role street vendors play in the life, not only the economy, of our city.

16. Overall… • There are more than 10,000 street vendors in New York City • Their products range from… -Hot dogs, “nut4nuts”, pretzels, flowers, books, art, shoe shiners, & street artists. They all give this city its smells, its looks, its face. There may be many street vending carts all over the world, but New York City’s vending carts are: New York City’s vending carts. So that no matter far we travel, how long we’ve been away from home… …when we return, the canopies of the hot dog stand or the smell of a halal cart will be signaling us: we’re home, we’re finally home...