Real thought-provoking shot for me, and one of the more pleasing for me in this image. Nice contrast work, and the use of deep bokeh is effective. I'm almost wondering if there'd been a bit of burn work here, particularly on the right and left sides of the frame. Still...benefit of doubt and all that...8
7 - Like the moment and character capture and the b/w works well. Criticism; mainly wish the top of the sign were incorporated (depending what it said, etc - and of course if you had it originally to work with/from), other than that, perhaps a little more height may have also made this better in my opinion.
I can almost feel the weariness of the man holding the sign compared with the hustle and bustle of the street behind him. I like it. The use of black and white works well. Good luck in the challenge.
I like how you've captured when and where without the what. We're left to guess at what by examining the person holding the sign. This is the difference between art and wordplay. One of my faves.