Lee: the-curbside-chronicle

Songs we love: Curbside Chronicle vendors shout out the tunes they hold close alongside top-tier musicians

Who doesn’t have a song that’s made a special impact on their life? The Curbside Chronicle reached out to musicians from across the US, as well as a few of their own street paper vendors, to weigh in on the tracks that have changed the way they look at the world.

Grow your own way: Inside The Curbside Chronicle’s flower shop

Recently, the long gestating flower shop project of Oklahoma City street paper The Curbside Chronicle finally opened. Here, we take an inside look at the opening day of Curbside Flowers, in downtown Oklahoma City, which provides people transitioning out of homelessness a workplace for their blossoming talents — one bouquet at a time.

Combatting social isolation during the pandemic

During the course of the last year, COVID-19 has grown from an invisible threat to a pervasive international health emergency. The virus has also impacted mental health and sparked instances of relapse. Oklahoma City street paper The Curbside Chronicle spoke with those who’ve struggled with feeling alone and those working the frontlines of mental health to shine a light on the dark side of social isolation and discover some hope.

Black lives matter: Protest movement against racism, oppression and police brutality sweeps across America

Since the death of George Floyd, a young black man killed by a white police officer as his colleagues stood idly by, protests have sprung up across the US and other parts of the world calling for an end to systemic racial injustices and police brutality. American street papers were present at many of those protests.

Getting by: Homeless during a pandemic in Oklahoma city

Throughout March and April, the world changed. COVID-19 turned something as simple as a trip to the park into a memory. Yes, it’s been a struggle. But when so much of the advice hinges on staying indoors and staying isolated, what does it mean if you’re experiencing homelessness? How do you shelter in place when you have no home? We have received dispatches from different parts of the world on this subject. Today: Oklahoma City, home of The Curbside Chronicle.

Paws everything! The pets keeping Curbside vendors company in lockdown

Now that the world has stopped spinning as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, it’s a great time to take a moment to meet a few un-fur-gettable vendor pets and hear about their amazing impact. Pets are a huge part of Curbside Chronicle vendors’ lives and they actively brighten even their most difficult days. We hope you’re also finding comfort in your furry friends as you practice social distancing!

Fab Feb Front Pages: A round-up of this month’s street paper covers

Find out what cover stories have been making a splash on the streets around the world this month.

Magic Hour: Curbside Chronicle vendors document golden moments through disposables

Vendors of The Curbside Chronicle documented their lives through a disposable camera photo essay with a magic hour theme for the Oklahoma street paper’s 55th issue, with some stunning results.

September’s street papers: The best of this month’s covers

We’ve rounded up the best of the street paper covers we’ve seen being sold on the streets this September.

Covers Galore: Rounding-up August’s street paper front pages

Fiction, food, festivals and fun – here’s our round-up of street papers covers this month.

Passion projects: Curbside Chronicle vendors on their hobbies

Curbside Chronicle vendors don’t just sell magazines. Although that’s probably what you’ll catch our green-vested sales force doing in public, it’s only one facet of their lives. Vendors love movies, sports and art just like anyone else. When vendors transition back into housing, it not only creates more opportunities for stability and comfort but also allows them to pursue their hobbies. From painting and drawing to tabletop gaming and leather work, here’s what some of our vendors do in their free time.

Summer Front Pages: A round-up of July’s street paper covers

Here’s our round-up of the bold, bright and beautiful covers being sold on the streets this July.

Covers, Covers, Covers: We round-up the recent street paper front pages

We recently crowned the winner of our People’s Cover Award – find out who took home the top prize, and take a look at the other covers making a splash and being sold by our vendors around the world.

INSP Awards: 2019 Winners Announced!

The winners of the 2019 INSP Awards have been revealed at the official Awards Ceremony, as part of the Global Street Paper Summit in Hannover, Germany.

Read The Curbside Chronicle’s ‘Ghost Bikes’ feature named 2019 Special News Service Award winner

To mark the 2019 INSP Awards, we are diving into the INSP Archive to bring you the pieces crowned with editorial honours. Oklahoma City’s The Curbside Chronicle published its ‘Ghost Bikes’ photo essay last year during National Bike Month and is now the recipient of this year’s Special News Service Award.

INSP Awards: Announcing the Best Partnership 2019 Finalists

It’s time to reveal the final set of 2019 INSP Awards Finalists, with the Top 6 entries up for our new award honouring Best Partnership.

INSP Awards: The 2019 Best News Feature Finalists are here

As the excitement continues to build for the 2019 INSP Awards, we will be announcing the Finalists in each category over the next fortnight – starting today with the Top 5 Entries for Best News Feature.

INSP Awards: the 2019 Best Photograph Nominees are here

Say cheese…it’s time for us to announce the Best Photograph Nominees for the INSP Awards 2019!

INSP Awards: Announcing the 2019 Nominees for Best Design

This award acknowledges excellence in street paper design – find out who’s made the Top 10.

INSP Awards: Announcing the 2019 Best News Feature Nominees

We’re delighted to reveal the first set of nominees for the INSP Awards 2019 today, and we’re kicking off with the Top 10 Entries for Best News Feature.

What vendors eat

Helping readers get to know our vendors is a big motivator for putting together street papers. For this story, The Curbside Chronicle asked vendors to document a week’s worth of meals with a food diary, curious to know more about what vendors are eating. They photographed a single day of meals from several participants. The results were mixed — everything from multiple visits to soup kitchens to eating nothing at all. But one thing was clear, most vendors experience significant food insecurity. Hopefully this piece helps illustrate how poverty affects people and what they eat every day.

Curbside vendors Mark and Rene tie the knot

Curbside Chronicle vendors Mark and Rene got married last year, and now the Oklahoma City street paper wants to share what everyone missed from their wedding. Here’s the recap featuring everything from wedding cupcakes to the first dance.

Feeling the Love: A look at February’s street paper covers

Some LOVEly covers have caught our eye this month – here’s our February round-up of front pages.

Festive Front Pages: A round-up of covers, calendars and books being sold on the streets this Christmas

With the festive season in full swing and Christmas Day less than a week away, we take a moment to cast our eye over the street papers, calendars, books and other goodies on sale by vendors during December.

A round-up of November’s street paper covers

As the festive season approaches and we prepare to open the first door of our advent calendars, time to take a look back at the street paper covers that have been sold by our vendors in 34 countries around the world during November.

Paws everything: Curbside vendors share what their furry friends mean to them

The editors of The Curbside Chronicle make room in every issue to share personal stories from Curbside vendors, as their goal to document the challenges of homelessness. Homelessness can be an extremely difficult path and going it alone is never easy, which is why readers might notice that some of the magazine’s vendors have pets. In a series of conversations with Curbside vendors, we find out more about the furballs who have wagged their way into vendors hearts and become an integral part of the Curbside community.

INSP Awards: 2018 Best Breakthrough Finalists Unveiled

It’s just one week until we crown the winners of the 2018 INSP Awards, and the excitement is reaching fever pitch!

Our vendors: Rhonda (The Curbside Chronicle, Oklahoma City, USA)

Rhonda, a vendor for Oklahoma City street paper The Curbside Chronicle, speaks candidly here about her childhood, upbringing, experiences of abuse, marriage and fighting her way back to housing.