Everything Street Roots does is with the idea of looking at the world through a lens of love. Regardless of where you come from, or where you’re going — Street Roots strives to give people a sense of belonging.
The mission of Street Roots is to create income opportunities for people experiencing homelessness and poverty by producing a newspaper and other media that are catalysts for individual and social change.
Being a catalyst for individual and social change is at the heart of everything we do.
Street Roots is more than just a weekly publication. It’s a force of good for social justice in our community. The newspaper is so much more than just an income. It’s a way for people to be able to build genuine relationships in the community across class lines. It’s a tool for building self-confidence and a tool for helping change the lives of not only the vendors selling the newspaper, but the thousands of readers that support Street Roots.
Back in January, when Street Roots launched a weekly publication, we had moved the price of the paper for vendors from 25 cents to 35 cents — something vendors had supported to help pay for the additional production costs of a weekly newspaper. The first couple of editions sold like hotcakes, but it was clear that additional increase of 10 cents was eating into the vendors’ income.
Street Roots collectively made the decision to come back down to 25 cents. After all, why should vendors have to pay the price? Wasn’t the entire idea of publishing weekly suppose to boost vendors’ income? Exactly. It was the right thing to do.
At the end of the day, everything we do is with the goal of providing vendors with the necessary opportunities to improve their quality of life.
“Having a weekly publication has allowed me to make more money, but it’s also allowed me to think about my future in different ways,” says Earl Bennett, a Street Roots vendor. “It’s allowing me to stand on my own two feet.”
In this edition of the newspaper you’ll find an envelope. You can help offset giving vendors a raise by supporting the larger organization by giving a one-time or recurring donation this month. In May, all recurring donations are being matched by a generous donor.
This is an incredible time at Street Roots. The dialogue happening in the pages of Street Roots and on street corners between vendors and readers is amazing. After all, selling the newspaper is more than just an income. It’s about building self-confidence. It’s about self-respect. It’s about being a part of the larger community. It’s about finding solutions in both individuals lives and the lives of the people we collectively serve.
We can’t thank you enough for all of your support.
