Sean Basinski

Sean Basinski is the founder and director of the Street Vendor Project, a member-based advocacy group for vendors’ rights at the Urban Justice Center. In 1998, before law school, Sean sold burritos from the corner of 52nd Street and Park Avenue. In 2009, he spent seven months researching and writing about the informal economy as a Fulbright scholar in Lagos, Nigeria. He teaches community organizing at NYU and Columbia.

The Street Vendor Project, with nearly two thousand active members, seeks to increase justice and respect for everyone who sells food and merchandise on the streets and sidewalks of New York City. We believe that vendors bring life to our streets and safety to our communities. We want more licenses, more public space for vending, and less harassment.