Vendor interview: Marvin
This is your space to say whatever you want. Do you want to introduce yourself, and tell us some things about yourself?
My name is Marvin, but my street name is Jedi, Blacks, or Vader, like in Star Wars. But the thing about it, people think that it’s to do with Star Wars, but literally it’s just when I was younger I used to smoke a lot of weed and my eyes were always red. And a person came up with red-eye Jedi, and then it just turned to Jedi. But yeah. I’m originally from Hackney. I’ve been selling the magazine for about, on and off, three years.
How did you get involved in selling DOPE Magazine?
Well, I’m originally from Hackney, and there was a magazine similar to the DOPE magazine that was called Nervemeter. It was like a glossy magazine that also did alternative theories and things of that nature. And they stopped selling after COVID. Then I came down here and I ran into DOPE magazine, and found out about Freedom Bookshop, and took it from there.
Do you ever find it hard to sell this newspaper - an anarchist newspaper - or do you find people are quite open to it?
I basically have a route that I take, and I find people that are more receptive to it are more the millennial, Gen-Z type of people. People of an older age do take it, but that’s because obviously I’m doing something - like, I’m not begging. But yeah, the places I used to go to was Old Street, Liverpool Street and Angel, and that’s where you find most of the millennial and Gen-Z people as well.
Do you ever get any bother from anyone?
The one thing that angers me most - well, I wouldn’t say angers me, it’s a normal thing - is when people don’t say anything. I’d rather a person say no, or even an expletive, than just to ignore me. Because it’s like - you know?
It’s hurtful.
Yeah.
If you could change one thing about the whole world tomorrow, what would you change?
The one thing - people being more accepting of love and taking a leap of faith to give love. Because people like to be in the company of people. Me personally, I get gassed off making people feel good. Because when I was younger, I used to be bullied. So when one person in the group does not feel included enough, I take it personally that I didn’t do enough to help make them feel included.
What do you do when you’re not selling DOPE Magazine? Do you have any particular things you’re interested in?
Oh yeah, I do. I do multimedia technology. I sell electricals, phones, TVs. I’ve got a stall I rent on Sunday at the market. Basically what I want to do, and I’ve given a draft of my business plan to my key worker, I’m trying to marry both selling and electronics, but do an online presence as well. So I’ll basically get reclaimed electronics that people throw away, upscale it because I’m a bit of a tinkerer, and plus I know how to build computers and fix and stuff like that. And then make a business out of it.
Where do you see yourself in a couple years?
I hope to see myself in my own flat or house or apartment, and hopefully the business idea taking off.
Has the situation on the streets changed since you’ve been out there?
Yes. If it wasn’t for DOPE magazine, I wouldn't have got off the streets. Because one of the people that I actually spoke to was from Thames Reach, which is an outreach homeless service. And they put me - this was actually during COVID - they put me in an emergency hostel in King's Cross. The very next day, I was taken to west London, Latimer Road, to a Travelodge. And then from there, to St Mungos.
You meet so many people in a day - if you could make people understand one thing about your life, what would it be?
We’re just like you. We’re dealt a bad hand. Whether self-inflicted, or by accident, whatever the situation is. So please be more receptive, and at least make the person feel like they’re a bit visible. You know? Don’t just walk past them. At the end of the day, the connection alone makes the person feel they’re still part of compassion.
DOPE Magazine is free for anyone who wants to sell it in the street. Vendors keep 100% of the money.
Photos: Emil Lombardo.