2nd Annual Street Vendor Sonidero

Fifth Sun Project, a local Indigenous and community-focused group, is back with the second annual Street Vendor Sonidero fundraiser! Come out to Starboard Tack on Saturday, August 6, from 7 PM to 1 AM to help support our local street vendor community! Local street and sex worker documenter, Rick R.L., documented the Sonidero last year and has joined the team this year to curate the event and document the night once again.

The Street Vendor Sonidero costs a $5 donation cover to enter. People who donate $20 or more also receive drink tickets, raffle tickets, and stickers with their donation. The event will also host many local food vendors at the event, like Phyto’s Vegan Eats, as well as live art and vending by amazing local artists and creatives, including Bluumangoo!

Prizes and raffle items will be awarded throughout the evening, including items like gift cards, a tattoo voucher, movie tickets, art pieces, and much more!

The event will also feature an open dance floor and dance contests with DJ KumbiaDarks in the Cumbia, Reggaeton, and Throwback (80’s/90’s) categories. It costs $10 per contest entry, or $20 to enter all three, with the entry fee applying directly to the fundraiser. Sign up for the contest here.

Shaun Navarro of the Las Vegas DSA will be hosting the event!

Fifth Sun Project is looking for donations from local artists, vendors, and businesses, to add to their raffle and prize list for the dance contest. And, they are seeking fiscal sponsors for the remainder of the year.

“[The] Street Vendor Sonidero is for the hood, by the hood, and no h8ters or lamez allowed. Bring your best outfit and dance moves!” Eztli Amaya of Fifth Sun Project and co-organizer Rick R.L. said.

For more information, check out Fifth Sun Project on Instagram or visit their Link Tree to sign up or donate!

Carrying on the Success of Last Year’s Street Vendor Sonidero

For the first annual Street Vendor Sonidero last July, Fifth Sun Project raised $2,375 for local street vendors hit hard by challenges brought on by COVID-19. Of that amount, they distributed $1,575 to 15 local street vendors in East Las Vegas, Northtown, and the Historic West Side throughout the summer and fall of 2021. The remaining $800 went to Vida Dulce, a local vegan pan dulce baker, to help them get their vending permit. Additional fundraiser donations, meal kids by the DSA, toys from the Las Vegas Indian Center, and other donations from the community were collected and distributed throughout the holidays.

This year, with the worsening economic crisis and rising food costs, Fifth Sun Project aims to raise at least another $1,500 for 15 local street vendors and connect with new vendors in the community. They are also seeking donations of meal kits, first aid kits, reusable water bottles and flasks, gift cards, and other donations to distribute through the summer and holiday season.

The Importance of Supporting Our Street Vendors

Street vendors are an integral part of our community here in Las Vegas and beyond. And working on the street outside of a traditional store, street vendors are vulnerable to a wide range of issues.

Economic Hardship

According to the Economic Research Service through the USDA, all food prices are predicted to increase between 7.5 and 8.5 percent this year. This makes it harder for street vendors to acquire the food items they need to serve the community.

Excessive Heat

With the summers in Vegas worsening every year and more temperature records broken and heat waves to endure, our street vendors work in these unsafe conditions out of necessity. In doing so, they further risk their health and lives with no medical or financial coverage. This necessity stems from legal status, health, and other financial issues, on top of the rising costs of housing and other living expenses in our community.

Housing Costs

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise area ranked two out of the 15 largest US metro areas with the highest rent increases. This came out to a median rent increase of 24.8%, which makes housing increasingly unaffordable in our community. And for our local street vendors, this means they have to work even harder in dangerous conditions just to keep a roof over their family’s heads.

Supporting Families in the Community

Like most people, our local street vendors have children and families to care for. Supporting them helps support their families! Our community grows stronger when we lift each other up.

So #GetinMotion this Saturday for the Street Vendor Sonidero and help support the amazing street vendors in our community!

#streetvendor#sonidero#lasvegas#fundraiser#supportsmallbusiness#protectstreetvendors#porlacultura