Earlier this year, seven newspaper vendors received citations for selling The Contributor on the sidewalks of Brentwood, Tenn. These vendors received the citations under a local Brentwood ordinance that prohibits the selling of any goods or services on a Brentwood sidewalk.

The City of Brentwood has created unconstitutional and repressive restrictions that violate The Contributor's First Amendment rights to sell its paper and share its message. ACLU-TN and The Contributor's supporters will stand in defense of those rights.

Through face to face interactions between customers and vendors, street newspapers are able to accomplish multiple aims. Community is created between customers and vendors, thus changing perspectives on homelessness. Secondly, street newspapers provide a flexible source of income, from which, approximately 1/3 of The Contributor's vendors are able to obtain housing within 3 months of selling the paper.

We are calling for Williamson County and the City of Brentwood officials to allow The Contributor's vendors the freedom to sell on public sidewalks to customers passing by on foot & in their vehicle, because this is what makes earning a living in various areas of Davidson and Williamson County feasible.