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  • SR
Expect to see the homeless vendors of Street Roots looking a bit sharper this summer: The newspaper just used private donations to buy every seller a bright red hat and windbreaker.

The new duds are supposed to help distinguish Street Roots vendors from panhandlers, says the paper's Director Israel Bayer, adding that the request for outfits came from the vendors. "It's not mandatory to wear them, but for most of the vendors they have been very popular," says Bayer.

Rather than shamefully avoiding eye contact or pretending to talk on your cell phone, Street Roots put up this little list of how to support their homeless vendors, even if you don't buy a copy of the paper.