About 55% speak little to no English, and many are undocumented, making them a target for policing and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. \u201cThere are a lot of stories you\u2019ll hear in the exhibition where vendors explicitly told us, \u2018Please don\u2019t share our photo, please don\u2019t share our names,\u2019\u201d Parvizi said.<\/p>\n
How vendors struggle on a daily basis\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
Working five or six days a week for 12-plus hours, rain or shine, while pushing heavy carts, is physically draining. Two out of three vendors don\u2019t have access to a bathroom while working.<\/p>\n
Around 400 years of vending have created a maze of rules and regulations vendors have to navigate. Under Mayor Eric Adams, law enforcement ramped up to enforce these rules. In 2024, the police and Department of Sanitation collectively issued more than 10,000 tickets to vendors lacking proper paperwork or violating rules that advocates say are too expensive and burdensome to follow. That\u2019s five times more than in 2019. In July, Adams vetoed a reform bill<\/a> that would help decriminalize street food vendors, arguing that it would harm established businesses and pose public health risks.<\/p>\n Nazli Parvizi, president of MOFAD, talks about the exhibition\u2019s \u201cCall to Action\u201d corner. (Credit: Ambra Schuster)<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n The permit problem and possible change<\/b><\/p>\n The biggest barrier for street food vendors remains the city\u2019s limited vending permits, which have a waitlist of about 10 years. The only way to sell legally is to buy a license on the black market for up to $25,000 instead of a few hundred dollars.<\/p>\n But change may be coming: Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has promised to add 4,000 permits, update vending rules and address what he calls \u201cHalalflation.\u201d Something Parvizi is \u201cthrilled about.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"Nazli](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-10-at-6.18.15-PM-1024x571.png\")
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