Letters to the Editor
The following letter was sent by Bette Kerr.
I just sent [a message] to [City Council member] Gale Brewer, thanking her for all she did to secure justice for our UWS community news vendor Sadik Topia. Gratitude goes also to West Side Spirit & Straus Media for publishing a number of feature articles on Mr. Topia when his troubles began, and again an online article I received this evening with the wonderful news that he will be returning to his newsstand at West 79th Street & Broadway. When you published your first articles about his plight, I wrote several letters of support and sent them to you. You generously published portions of my letters. Thanks in large part to you, as well as to Councilwoman Brewer and members of our UWS community, Sadik will soon be returning to his newsstand.
My letter to Gale Brewer, below:
Dear Council member Gale Brewer:
The best news I’ve heard in weeks just jumped off my computer screen: News vendor Sadik Topia, of the newsstand on the NW corner of 79th Street & Broadway is returning!
It takes a village—or in this case, a community—to recognize the worthiness of a person and come together to fight for a just resolution to his plight. You may remember that I joined you in writing letter after letter recognizing and praising this hardworking man’s contributions to the community in which he worked—our Upper West Side community—and to the community at large. Thank you for all you did to bring Mr. Topia’s case to the public and to NYC officials in order to raise consciousness and draw people with the wherewithal to help him. His newsstand, caught in a mixture of many problems, most of which he did not knowingly create, will soon re-open and will be properly licensed in his own name.
By featuring his plight in a number of issues, West Side Spirit (Straus Media) also deserves significant praise for bringing Sadik Topia back to his newsstand and to all of us. A celebration is in order.
Editor’s Note: Thanks for your kind letter celebrating the return of Sadik “Sami” Topia. The West Side Spirit was happy to be able to bring his plight to the attention of elected officials. Since you wrote to us last week, Sami has received his vendor license from the city and has reopened his newsstand. We hope you and many others will stop by and say hello to Sami.