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About Street roots. (Portland, OR) 1998-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 23, 2015)
Street Roots • January 23-29, 2015 News Page 7 Mexico City to launch new street paper BY LAURA KELLY ~ C O N T R IB U T IN G W R IT E R mong the colorful markets, historic plazas and grand cathedrals of Mexico City, there are tens of thousands of homeless people living on the streets. Many live their whole lives without ever having a place to call their own. Some are the third generation of their family to be born into homelessness. Opportunities to escape the cycle of poverty are limited, and P H O TO BY M A R IA PORTILLA violent gangs prey on the estimated 40 Vendors o f the new street paper, M i Valedor, which is set to launch in Mexico City. percent of the country’s population who live in poverty. In this challenging and dangerous the group. program to help fledgling street papers. Mi environment, 26-year-old artist Maria “All of them have lived many years on the Valedor is “my pal” in Mexican slang, but Portilla is leading a team of six brave young street. Three of them have lived all their life Maria says its meaning for them is women -L all in their mid-20s, and without on the street, since they were children,” “something like ‘my protector’ or ‘someone any pribr experience in the magazine Maria says. who looks out for me.’” That’s what the industry — to bring her home country its The stories of how they became street paper aims to be for its vendors, she first street paper. Mi Valedor will launch homeless may be varied but one thing binds says. this month to join the nearly 120 similar all of the vendors: they want a way out of Alongside Catholic charity La Carpa (The projects, including Street Roots, that are homelessness and off the streets. “They Tent), they have already recruited 10 part of the International Network of Street don’t want to be there anymore,” Maria vendors to start selling their publication. Papers. They hope to add to that number soon with says. “Mexico City needs this,” Maria says. Miguel Angel Valenc^'Ji^T^>-yearTitd Mi help from Street Soccer Mexico, the local “There are grandparents who were born in Valedor vendor agrees. “Today, I woke up organization th atsen d s a team to th e the streets and have lived their whole lives with the motivation to keep going, and not Homeless World Cup each year. there. There are very few organisations, or return to the way things were before,” he Over the past weeks, the women have laws from the government, to help homeless been getting to know the people who will be says. “I learned from the streets; it’s easy to people. The government doesn’t even have lose yourself there, as an addict, no job, just selling Mi Valedor. Having based the Mi a proper count of the people living in the wandering. Now, I am looking to correct Valedor office in a creative area, they aim to street. So they are super-excluded. They things. Employment is what I was looking link their vendors into that community. don’t have any good attention or facilities.” for.” They recently ran a knitting workshop for Mi Valedor was supported by the INSP ■ A friendly visit from a former vendor e got a visit recently from former vendor Chris Caldwell. When he showed up to SR last spring, Chris, a professional painter, was out of work and experiencing homelessness. While selling with us, Chris got two great opportunities? a full-time painting job and a three?month stay at the Clark Center shelter. Chris was able to save several paychecks along with his Street Roots earnings (he was still selling papers after work) and used the money toward a security deposit and first month’s rent on an apartment. Last week, Chris showed up with paint on his arms and a smile on his face driving the truck he’d just purchased. “I’m so grateful for all that Street Roots has done for me,” he said. ■ B etter 'w M h e a lth here for I you Delivering physical, behavorial heatth and T r a n s itio n Projects believes 110 One should have to be homeless ental health care for over 230,000 children, milies and individuals on the Oregon Health Plan in the Portland Tri-County area. Together we are health www.healthshareoregon.tirg Transition Projects I 650 NW Irving St. Portland, OR 97209 503.280.4700 www.tprojects.org
