It’s not a handout. It’s a newspaper. (It’s probably a better deal for us than those candy bars little kids sell because it contains neither corn syrup or empty calories.) A lot of us can relate to that feeling of helplessness when approached by a homeless person asking for money, whether or not you give any money away. We know the spare change is not a solution to the problem. We wish there was more sustainable stream of help, a more effective way of offering our support. That’s probably why my first year out of college, living in Portland, Oregon, when someone offered to sell me a copy of a Street Roots, I became enamored with the idea of a “street paper”–a newspaper run, written, and sold by homeless.

Turns out upon further research, Portland’s Street Roots is a maverick (forgive the word choice) in the field of street papers–check out this article from Utne magazine. Now working again in a big city and living in Berkeley, I’ve come across two different street papers: Street Sheet and Street Spirit. In the Utne article, the vice chair of the North American Street Newspaper Association (NASNA) pointed out that being known as “homeless papers” isn’t exactly the most effective marketing technique. NASNA works to provide these papers with networking and tech assistance. Also mentioned is the International Network of Street Papers (INSP) that joined forces with NASNA creating the Street News Service so papers can “swap the sort of content that can bring attention to issues facing the economically vulnerable around the globe.”

Three nights ago I was  at the gas station and a man named Rick rolled up in a wheelchair to talk with me. I’ve never met him before but we talked for a few minutes about why the paper (in this case, Street Spirit) hadn’t put out a new edition for a while because the guy that runs it got sick. We talked about how it was a shame that the paper was so dependent on one person.  I didn’t have cash, but Rick insisted I take a paper with me. I couldn’t bring myself to take it for nothing, but I asked Rick where he normally sold his papers and that I’d look for him. The next day on a bike ride, I stopped next to the curb and I saw Rick. Luckily, I happened to have a dollar bill and I was able to give Rick a dollar. He didn’t have any papers but I figured I’d see him again.

I’m a big fan of street papers. Maybe it’s because I went to journalism school and have a soft spot for rogue rags. Or maybe it’s because I think creating economic opportunities for our poorest communities while also drawing attention to homeless issues through citizen journalism is just plain awesome.

Image from the www.StreetRoots.org, Portland, OR