The ''Homeless Grapevine'' was a

street newspaper Street newspapers (or street papers) are newspapers or magazines sold by homeless or poor individuals and produced mainly to support these populations. Most such newspapers primarily provide coverage about homelessness and poverty-related is ...

sold by

homeless Homelessness or houselessness – also known as a state of being unhoused or unsheltered – is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and adequate housing. People can be categorized as homeless if they are: * living on the streets, also kn ...

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

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, United States. It was published by the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless (NEOCH) from 1992 to 2009. Vendors bought the paper for 25 cents per copy and sell them for 1 dollar. The papers attempted to be a voice for the homeless and content was entirely dedicated to homeless issues, much of it written by current or former homeless. It was a monthly magazine of 16 pages and as of 2004 had a circulation of 5,000 copies sold by 15–20 vendors. Sellers were often at The West Side Market, Public Square, E. 9th St., East 12th and Coventry.

History

It was started in 1991 by

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...

student Fred Maier and was originally photocopied and sold for 25 cents. In 1993 it was taken over NEOCH and its former director Bryan Gillooly, who published the first issue of the new Homeless Grapevine that spring. The special issue 65(a) in May–June 2004 was entirely dedicated to Daniel Thompson, the

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Cuyahoga County Cuyahoga County ( or ) is a large urban County (United States), county located in the Northeast Ohio, northeastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. It is situated on the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the Canada–United States border, U.S.- ...

, who was also a homeless advocate and had often written for the paper. The ''Homeless Grapevine'' was listed as a "notable entry" in the 2006 Knight-Batten Awards with the comment "A pat on the back for job well done". The paper won the Greater Cleveland Community Shares ''Social Justice Reporting Award'' in 2005. The ''Homeless Grapevine'' was discontinued in 2009. The following year, NEOCH launched its replacement, ''The Cleveland Street Chronicle''.

Legal activities

In the mid-1990s, the city required that ''Grapevine'' sellers have a peddlers' license, costing 50 dollars. After one vendor was ticketed, the

American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". T ...

of Ohio argued that it was a violation of the

First Amendment First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and the charges were dropped. A lawsuit was also filed on behalf of homeless vendors and the

Nation of Islam The Nation of Islam (NOI) is a religious and political organization founded in the United States by Wallace Fard Muhammad in 1930. A black nationalist organization, the NOI focuses its attention on the African diaspora, especially on African ...

that was selling their newspaper ''

The Final Call ''The Final Call'' () is a newspaper published in Chicago. It was founded in 1979 by Minister Louis Farrakhan and serves as the official newspaper of the Nation of Islam. The magazine acts as the group's tool to spread their agenda, goals and ...

'' in public. A district court ruled with the vendors, but the Sixth Circuit Appeals Court reversed it, siding with the city. According to ACLU representatives, the ''Grapevine'' coverage also played a major role in resolving another ACLU lawsuit,Clements v. City of Cleveland, filed October 4, 1994 (N.D. Ohio). which had been brought against the city for transporting homeless to isolated areas.

References

External links

The Homeless Grapevine website

Homeless Grapevine blog
{{Street newspapers Street newspapers Defunct newspapers published in Cleveland Publications established in 1991 Publications disestablished in 2009