CANAL STREET VENDORS
Canal Street in Lower Manhattan, New York, has long been a place where many Senegalese immigrants make a living through informal street vending.
Betty (a nickname) is one of them. Since arriving in the United States in 2023 via the so-called Senegal–Guatemala route, she has been trying to survive and build a new life.
Nov. 22 , 2025 - Betty sent me a video and a voice message saying, “ICE is on Canal. I’m going home. ICE came and arrested a Senegalese man over there.”
Bronx, February 2026 — Betty relaxes at her apartment in the Bronx after finishing work on Canal Street.
Canal street, October 2025 — Betty sells accessories.
Canal street, February 2026 — Betty says her previous jobs paid only $20 to $50 a day, making it difficult to cover living expenses, save for asylum-related expenses and send money home.
She says they have grown rougher since she arrived in New York and began taking whatever jobs she could find, including dishwashing, painting and cleaning.
Canal street, February 2026 — Tea sold by Betty. She says fears of arrest over counterfeit goods, along with the winter cold, led her to switch from selling counterfeit accessories to selling tea to fellow vendors.
Bronx, February 2026 — Betty heads home to the Bronx after work on Canal Street.
Bronx, New York — Betty rests in the bedroom she shares with three Senegalese men in the Bronx on Tuesday, December 16, 2025. She says she has an issue with men sleeping in the bed next to hers and hopes to move out once she finds stable work.
Bronx, February 2026 — Betty prepares tea at her apartment in the Bronx at night for sale the next day.
Bronx, February 2026 — Betty prays while preparing tea at her apartment in the Bronx for sale the next day.
Bronx, February 2026 — Betty lives in an apartment in the Bronx with seven othe
She says her sales dropped sharply after the ICE raid on Canal Street on October 21, 2025, and remained lower as of Saturday, November 15, 2025.
According to the Immigration Research Initiative,
55 percent of street vendors working in Manhattan were born in Senegal.
Canal street, NEW YORK, March 8, 2025
Canal street, NEW YORK, October 2025
NEW YORK, March 7, 2026 — Senegalese street vendors arrange merchandise for sale in front of a souvenir shop on Canal Street.
Canal Street, Manhattan — A Senegalese street vendor speaks with passers-by while selling counterfeit sunglasses on Canal Street in Manhattan on Sunday, November 2, 2025. Senegalese vendors say a single pair of sunglasses can bring about $10 in gross profit, part of the small margins that shape the informal street vending economy on Canal Street.
Canal street, NEW YORK, March 2025
Canal street, NEW YORK, November 2025 — Street vendors line Canal Street.
Canal street, NEW YORK, October 2024 — ouleye rests after finishing a dreadlock styling service for a vendor.
Canal street, New York, March 2026 — A senegalese street vendor arrange merchandise on Canal Street.
Canal street, NEW YORK, November 2025 — Noreyni (a pseudonym) packs up his goods after hearing a police siren and warnings from fellow vendors that officers were approaching.
West 116th Street in Harlem, March 5, 2025 — New York Police Department officers confiscate shoes and clothing from Seck, a Senegalese immigrant, for unlicensed street vending.
Canal Street, Manhattan — A Senegalese street vendor carries nearly empty rolling racks, usually loaded with bags, on Canal Street in Manhattan on Thursday, November 13, 2025. Many vendors keep their goods packed because of a heavier law enforcement presence than usual, and some say they are unable to earn money or send money to family members in Senegal.
Canal Street, October 24, 2025 — Noreyni (a pseudonym) inside a storage room after the long day of street vending.
Canal Street, October 24, 2025 — Noreyni (a pseudonym) inside a storage room after the long day of street vending.
CONEY ISLAND, New York, November 2025 — Noreyni (a pseudonym) said that fear of police and ICE on Canal Street, combined with a drop in customers, has pushed him to look for another place to run his business.
Khadim has an 18-year-old daughter in Senegal and, in addition to street vending, he plays drums at Senegalese wedding ceremonies in New York, though he says weddings in the Senegalese community are not frequent enough to provide steady work.
BRONX, March 25, 2026 — He speaks with his daughter in Senegal.
Bronx, New York — Khadim plays the drum during the wedding ceremony of Dia couple at 170 West 132nd Street in the Bronx on Sunday, October 19, 2025.
BRONX, March 25, 2026 — He celebrates Eid al-Fitr with his roommate three days after the holiday, having prioritized work on Canal Street when Eid fell on a Friday.
Bronx, New York — Lama, who lives with Khadim and three other Senegalese immigrants, examines how many okra pods she can buy within the day’s food budget in the Bronx on Tuesday, April 21, 2026.
Bronx, New York — Lama is cooking for 4 other senegalese men who live together.
Mol (a nickname) ’s wife and 2-year-old son live in Senegal. When Mol arrived in the United States in 2023, the child had not yet been born. His entire family now depends on him for financial support.
HARLEM, N.Y., October 2024 — Mol (a nickname) asks another Senegalese immigrant in New York who has already secured a job for advice.
Mol lived in a shelter in Brooklyn from when he arrived in New York in 2023 until December 2024.
HARLEM, N.Y., October 2024 — Mol and other Senegalese immigrants share a meal before returning to shelters. All are waiting for employment authorization documents while making a living selling goods on the street.
BRONX, N.Y., December 2025 — Mol plays a soccer video game with other members of the Senegalese immigrant community.
BRONX, N.Y., December 2025 — Mol and Souleye play a soccer video game with other members of the Senegalese immigrant community.
BRONX, N.Y., July 2025 — Mol prepares coffee to serve at a religious gathering. He said he had been fired from his first formal job at a franchise restaurant.
Asse Bamba (a nickname) sent me a voice message on his first day on Canal Street April. 10 , 2026. He said, “I’m taking a break on Canal Street. This job is not difficult. It’s less cold than doing delivery work. I’m going to start working here.”
He says delivery and restaurant work do not provide enough income.
HARLEM, N.Y., July 2026 — Asse Bamba and other Senegalese immigrants gather on West 116th Street, an area known as Little Senegal.
HARLEM, N.Y., July 2026 — Asse Bamba (a nickname) asks for donations for a large religious festival being held in New York.
MANHATTAN, N.Y., January 2025 — Asse Bamba stands outside his workplace.
Harlem, Manhattan — Asse Bamba and Baye Fall followers (members of a subgroup of the Mouride Sufi brotherhood) walk to a religious festival at the Presbyterian Church of Ghana in Harlem on Tuesday, March 10, 2026.
Bronx, New York — Asse Bamba and a fellow street vendor pray with Mame Thierno Mbacke Imam Borom Darou Sani, a Mouride religious leader visiting from Touba, Senegal in the Bronx on Sunday, July 6, 2025 at Williams Institutional CME. Touba is the holy city of the Mouride brotherhood, and Senegalese Mouride followers often seek prayers and blessings from visiting religious leaders.