The vendors are mostly people working side jobs and trying to supplement their incomes. We live in a poor neighborhood with old, sagging houses. Dented work trucks are parked in driveways, and the bus stops are full of people headed to construction and service industry jobs. “Our vendors are single moms, older people living on fixed incomes, and teachers making some extra money during the summer,” says Shante. “They are just working-class people who get off work at 4 PM and already have their car loaded up and ready to come set up over here.”
Many market customers are from the neighborhood; others are students on break from the Millenial Trade Academy, a beauty school up the road. One of the appeals of the market is that Shante has not only set it up so that the vendors can take SNAP, but she’s also secured a grant that allows families to double their SNAP dollars when they use their EBT card. “I hear from people who say ‘I only get $8 in food stamps, and I say, ‘Well, that’s $16 at the market!’”
Read the rest at Working Class Storytelling
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