Street vendors are part of the lifeblood of this city. They are an underappreciated but integral piece to many residents' experiences. Most people who have lived in Tucson for a little bit of time have likely had a positive experience with a street vendor. Many may even have personal connections with street vendors without really appreciating it. Think of the tamale ladies who save the day when McDonald's seems like the only option for dinner. Consider the hot dog vendors on Fourth Avenue and downtown, who are open until bar closing time and have saved countless from the porcelain gods. These people, working in a sort of underground economy, work their asses off to survive while at the same time contribute a little piece of happiness and soul to Tucson.
Despite the undeniable benefits of street vendors, the city's business and private interests are winning the battle for the public spaces they occupy. A recent city ordinance tucked behind the headlines of the local papers is the first step toward cleaning up and privatizing the city, and it will spell the end of street vending as we know it. The city ordinance changes the rules for these vendors, making it significantly tougher for them to operate.
In an attempt to grab whatever they can from one of the few black markets that is popular among the people, private interests and the city government (supposedly representing the people, but really representing the local food industry), have implemented a policy which will surely stifle street vending. Rules that were previously in existence but mostly ignored will now be enforced. New rules requiring street vendors to renew their permits yearly, pay a $50 fee, and insure themselves for at least $1 million will make it harder to operate. What street vendor can afford that high amount of liability insurance? Car owners, who also use the streets as public property, are not required to meet such a strict insurance standard.
The language of the new code on street vendors is extreme, with a number of strikingly oppressive statements outlining the city's new gentrifying attitude. First, the city begins by defining street vendors as peddlers. This clearly negative connotation of street vendors is aimed at influencing public opinion on the issue. Think about the simple difference between the word vendor and the word peddler. Vendor signifies a somewhat dignified status, while peddler throws any sense of pride out of the window and makes vendors out to be beggars.
Furthermore, the language of the new ordinance is oppressive toward the people's supposed right to public space. It is stated in city code section 7- 27.b.4 that "If the applicant intends on conducting business on city property, written authorization from the director of the department having control over such property (is required)." Why should someone be required to get written permission for vending on public land? Is it because they are in the lower class? Do they not satisfy the aesthetic concerns of city business interests? Or are city restaurants just closing down one last source of underground competition? The economic interests nested in city government doubtlessly have wielded their influence to make it tougher for street vendors.
But the street vending ordinance is just one of a handful of developments in Tucson that have exemplified the rights of those who represent the marginalized and the alternative lifestyles being taken away.
The Rio Nuevo project is transforming public spaces downtown into upscale condominiums. Some Tucson citizens saw their rights to public land further eroded two weeks ago at the Bush speech at Tucson Convention Center. In the interest of "security," police forced protesters off of the publicly-funded TCC property and made them stand across the street, where their voices would be muted.
Additionally, bicyclists and pedestrians will now find themselves under stricter surveillance by police after a $15,000 grant was handed to the Tucson Police Department to strenuously enforce traffic laws upon those who use alternative forms of transportation. Combined with the street vendor rules, these situations exemplify a scary trend in the city of Tucson, one in which business and private interests as well as the government gain further control over the lives of people and over their public spaces in the name of profit and cleanliness.
Dan Post is an anthropology and ecology senior. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.