Imagine you are a homeless person with scruffy clothes sitting on a busy street, hundreds of people passing you by and some giving you few curious glances.
Yet most of the passersby would probably treat you as invisible or a failure in life.
Despite the fact that we are always telling each other that we should treat others with dignity, we still attach negative labels to the homeless and needy in our society.
Of course, I believe there are some people who chose to become homeless and who are using their homeless status to receive free money from the government. But I also believe there are many people who have experienced some rough patches in life and who have had no choice but to live on the streets. There is nothing more they want than a helping hand that can offer them a second chance.
Recently I came across this UK organization called the “The Big Issue Foundation” and their magazine “The Big Issue”. I am totally drawn to their concept and the method through which they get themselves into this neglected homeless community.
In brief, the organization is founded by John Bird and Gordon Roddick in 1991 and their magazine is written by professional journalists and sold by homeless people.
From their website, they introduce,
“The Big Issue Foundation is a financially independent charity. We believe in a ‘hand up and not a hand out’ and recognize that earning an income is a key step in a person’s journey towards stability and a better life. Achieving something for yourself is 100% more empowering than having it done for you…. We work exclusively with Big Issue vendors. People who are homeless are often excluded from mainstream society, financially impoverished and disadvantaged in multiple ways; we seek to address the fundamental issues attached to social and financial exclusion.”
These people are The Big Issue vendors
There are nine Big Issue projects by the same name in other nations.
- The Big Issue Australia (From June 1996)
- The Big Issue Japan (From November 2003)
- The Big Issue Kenya (From 2007) • The Big Issue Korea (From July 2010)
- The Big Issue Malawi (From 2009)
- The Big Issue Namibia
- The Big Issue The Republic of Ireland
- The Big Issue South Africa (From December 1996)
- The Big Issue Taiwan (From April 2010)
- The Big Issue Zambia (From 2007)
Here is a small video about the magazine.
