ny street vendors

[mopinko]

ny DUers- i am thinking about going to the convention to sell buttons. especially after this mornings post about setting up a bushville. does anybody know what the official and/or unofficial situation regarding street vendors in ny? do you think the gestapo will squash such treason? any contacts with groups that might give me cover?

[CaptainClark23]

1. depends

If you are going to vend at protest sites/march, and stay on the move; or if you intend to set up a stand at times square and catch some tourist biz too.

with everything else that will be going on I wouldn't worry too much about getting caught in some NYPD quality of life sweep. Besides, I imagine with buttons you can be quite mobile. The worst thats likely to happen is you'll get told to "move along"...fold up quick and do so.

bottom line, don't sweat it, just use common sense.

[mopinko]

2. thanks i

do intend to hang at the protests. i need to work out a good mobile set-up. right now i have big suitcase that i use, so i can zip up and go. but i do need to fix up something so i can sell on the fly.

[CaptainClark23]

4. modified sandwich board

buttons are for wearing, right?

[mopinko]

6. i'm a victim of my own success

i have SO many buttons now. and i have a hard time editting myself. the suitcase weighs a ton. so it has to be a cart of some type. lots of button people have little granny carts, with a display board. i have a fantasy, tho. there is an old disney movie- bedknobs and broomsticks. there is a guy that has a suticase that pops out to a display table. it is really funny. guess you had to be there.

[sangh0]

3. I'm not sure

A couple of years ago there were some court cases involving NYC street vendors selling various types of merchandise. IIRC, the decision basically said that the selling of art, books, and (possibly) political materials were protected by the 1st Amendment and therefore couldn't be limited by license requirements, except for safety reasons. Assuming that's the whole story, you should be free to sell buttons. However, I suspect that assumption in incorrect. Given the crowds, I have a strong suspicion that the city would be able to hassle you based on their need to protect people's safety by controlling crowds.

I strongly recommend you contact an organization such as the ACLU or NYC's Legal Aid Society for advice. Whoever you call, tell them that you just need to some quick legal advice on selling political materials on the street during the convention. If they know your question isn't very complicated, it increases the odds that they will give you the time you need.

[mopinko]

5. great idea

thanks