May 20th, 2011 Part 2 @ Utrecht, Netherlands
The editor-in-chief of StraatNieuws, Frank had been working for the street magazine for 16 years. “If working just for helping homeless people out, I don’t think I could continue,” he said. “I just have been doing anything fun.”
The most memorable feature is “Social-Exclusion” issue, he says. Vendors hold the cover filled with a big-fonted letters, “Do you see me?” Frank talked that some kids had approached to vendors, saying “Do you see me? Of course, I can see you.” In a subtle way, the issue let people know about the homelessness.
Every Tuesday, StraatNieuws organizes writing club for vendors. One of the members, a Moroccan guy Hakim is Frank’s favorite. “His poem is so original, such as ‘My heart is big as a stadium/Who will come and play with me,’” he says. Hakim’s poetry sometimes appears on the magazine and readers are looking forward to the next one.