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Small spaces, big city: New Yorkers at work in tight quarters
By
Aïda Amer
Published Apr 26, 2024
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Aïda Amer/Gothamist
By
Aïda Amer
Published Apr 26, 2024
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New York City can be very isolating. Apartments, cubicles and subway cars can quite literally put us all in our own boxes, which can feel a bit confining. While feeling confined last year, I started thinking about the things we see over and over as city dwellers, and after I noticed "the box," I began to see it everywhere.
I spent months interviewing and photographing the people who work inside some of New York City’s smallest spaces, separated by a bit of glass, plastic, or sometimes nothing at all. These people often go beyond their job descriptions, acting as concierges for tourists, beacons for residents, and sometimes a last resort for the desperate.
“You never know what people are going through,” said Sophia Greene, an MTA station agent. “Human interaction is so important, we aren’t built to be isolated, we’re built to engage.”
MTA station agent Sophia Greene in her booth in Bed-Stuy on April 4, 2023.
Aïda Amer/Gothamist
“I had a customer that came up to me, and for some reason, I felt like something was going on with her,” Greene said. “She was a bit zoned out at my booth, and I kept asking her if she was OK. Eventually she started crying. I helped her sit down and had a conversation with her. She started talking to me about some family dynamics involving domestic abuse and homelessness. I shared some of my struggles with her, we were both single moms and had a lot of similar experiences."
"After talking for a while, she got herself together and left. She came back the next day to tell me she had planned on jumping in front of a train before she spoke to me," Greene said. "To this day I can never forget her face. I never thought I was saving a life, I was just letting her know there was someone who would listen to her and care. It was divine intervention. I think that makes my career: that someone’s mother is still alive because I gave a word of encouragement.”
Samaja Harrigan working in the ticket window of the IFC Center, affectionately dubbed "the box," on Dec. 12, 2023.
Aïda Amer/Gothamist
Samaja Harrigan, a ticket seller at the IFC Center, said people often don’t realize she’s there.
“The glass, for me, is kinda like you’re in a fishbowl. You have people just stare at you or look past you checking themselves out. Sometimes they don’t see you and they’re standing in front of the box talking, smoking, doing whatever until you turn on the mic and ask them to move. And they’ll say, 'Oh I didn’t see you there.' And I’m like, it's glass, how can’t you see me here?”
“I’ve seen so much stuff that I never thought I’d see,” Harrigan said. “You have a front row seat to see people live their life. A lot of bad stuff goes on, but for the most part, it’s really good.”
The glass, for me, is kinda like you’re in a fishbowl.
Samaja Harrigan, ticket seller at the IFC Center
Amin Khawaja in his taxi on Feb. 19, 2024. He has had his taxi license since 2001 and says he's given rides to a number of celebrities including Matt Damon, Bruce Willis and Harrison Ford.
Aïda Amer/Gothamist
“It’s stressful to be in a small space.” Amin Khawaja said from the front seat of his taxi as we rode through the Lower East Side. When asked about his experiences driving with riders in such an enclosed space: “Depends on the person.”
“Sometimes they’re nice, but sometimes they treat you as part of the machine.” Khawaja said, motioning with his arms towards the cab. “The best thing for me is to go home safe.”
“One time I picked up Barbara Walters," he said. "She was coming from her home and told me, 'Don’t tell anyone I look like this without makeup.’”
Behay El Saawe smiles from within his cart on Broadway and East Houston, in between making coffee for his regulars on Feb. 22, 2024.
Aïda Amer/Gothamist
These service workers, who are often unnoticed until they are needed, do their jobs in cramped conditions.
“Egyptians don't like to be in a box,” said Behay El Saawe, a halal cart worker who has manned the corner of Broadway and East Houston for 15 years.
He laughs before continuing: “But the job gives me a lot of freedom. I can travel for three or four months then come back and still have my job. I [could] get another job if I wanted. I have a college degree and a license and everything, but [working for] a company will keep you from being free.”
One time I picked up Barbara Walters. She was coming from her home and told me, "Don’t tell anyone I look like this without makeup."
Amin Khawaja, cabdriver
Moments of sonder are necessary for our city to function. You really never know what someone else is going through.
“My first Ramadan in America was in 2011. It was so hot, like over 100 degrees Fahrenheit for the first four days.” El Saawe said in between making coffees and toasting bagels. The food cart he works in is similar to others in the city: small and mostly made of metal. In February, the grill keeps him warm, but I imagine during that first Ramadan, in the August heat, it felt like hell fire.
“But of course I fasted. People fast during war, and it’s not like I’m in a battle — it was just hot!” He said that sometimes, the people he deals with can get agitated or even violent, but that he tries to work with everyone the best he can. “No matter what, you still have to smile for the customer.”
A subway operator poses between stops on the C train on April 4, 2023.
Aïda Amer/Gothamist
Ahmed looks for customers from the inside of his well-stocked halal cart in SoHo on Nov. 25, 2023.
Aïda Amer/Gothamist
A newspaper stand near Union Square on April 4, 2023. Only 330 newsstands remain in New York, down from a peak of 1,300 in 1950.
Aïda Amer/Gothamist
An unmanned security box on Feb. 19, 2024 near City Hall in Downtown Manhattan.
Aïda Amer/Gothamist
A COVID test worker in Midtown on April 4, 2023.
Aïda Amer/Gothamist
An MTA ticket booth at the Franklin Avenue stop in Brooklyn on April 8, 2023.
Aïda Amer/Gothamist
Tagged
new york city
Existing in New York City
Aïda Amer
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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