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Life, living, and sex work in Vienna, Austria

By Markus Schauta and Ruth Weismann on
Features
Until a few years ago, the corner of Linzer Strasse and Wissgrillgasse was Anna’s workplace. It was there, just past the tobacconists, that she waited for customers. “I would go to a cheap hotel with clients,” says this woman from Vienna, who has been a sex worker for 15 years. “The owners just took money for the room.” The client would pay.

50 Years After Stonewall: The most marginalized still face oppression

By Kathleen Hinkel on
Features
At the heart of the story of the Stonewall Rebellion are homeless LGBTQ youth, transgender people of color and a threatened place of refuge: a gay bar that welcomed the outcasts of society. The Stonewall Inn was a community center of sorts for drag queens and queer youth rendered homeless by familial or societal rejection. Admission at the Stonewall Inn was not expensive and homeless youth could easily scrounge up their admission through panhandling. Once they were in, they could socialize and have a sanctuary for the night.

A look inside a women’s shelter in Nuremberg, Germany

By Alisa Müller on
Features
In the small kitchen next to the wall is a square, plastic-topped table with a bunch of red and white roses. A pack of cocoa, one of noodles, and some fruit, are on the wooden shelves. It looks like a perfectly normal flat-share apart from one thing: there’s a sticker with ‘Room 9’ on the edge of the shelf on the left and ‘Room 10’ on the edge of the one on the right.

Tokuchika Nishi: Dancer and street vendor in Tokyo

By Mariko Kazuki on
Features   Street Spirits
Tokukicha Nishi, 39, has a purposeful gaze and long hair that he has been growing out since his beloved cat passed away. He became a Big Issue Japan vendor in July 2017. Monday through Friday, Mr. Nishi sells papers from 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. in front of the ‘Konaka The Flag’ store, near JR Shimbashi Station’s Ginza Exit and from 8 to 10pm in front of the bus terminal at JR Shinjuku Station’s South Exit.

Last rights for the unhoused in Canada

By Simon Cheung on
Features
Eventually, JP sat down on a chair, anaemic and lopsided. She was dying—had been for a while now. She was gripped by intense pain, but wouldn’t allow the nearby palliative team to touch her. JP’s neglected breast cancer had manifested into a festering tumor, dripping fetid discharge.

A love story between two Serbian street vendors

By Dragana Nikoletić on
Features
Bojana Ivanov Ljubomirov and Petar Jugovic are emotional-business partners, as they call themselves, and they complement each other perfectly. When it comes to selling Liceulice, Bojana is responsible for marketing and Petar takes care of the accounting. They say that they are progressing and gaining confidence through their work.