Skip to main content

What's it like to be a sidewalk canvasser?

caption: Johanna Holden, a San Francisco canvasser.
Enlarge Icon
Johanna Holden, a San Francisco canvasser.
Courtesy of Raja Shah

So you're walking down the street, and you see one of those people with a clipboard and they try and lure you to help them with their virtuous cause.

What do you do? Do you feel guilty? Annoyed? Do you talk to them, or do you just keep walking?

Have you ever wondered what’s it like to be the person doing the asking, all day every day?

Casey Miner, producer for the podcast,The Specialist, met canvasser Johanna Holden on a San Francisco street corner. Miner teamed up with reporter Raja Shah to find out what it's like to do Holden's job.

Editor's Note: This story was from the podcast produced by Casey Miner. It was sound designed and mixed by Seth Samuel, who also wrote the music.

Why you can trust KUOW