- A volunteer group in Houston received 80 citations for distributing food to the homeless.
- The city says it violates city ordinances, but the group maintains it has the right to distribute the food.
- The group says they have no intention of going anywhere, even though they have tickets.
A Houston volunteer group says it won’t stop after receiving dozens of tickets from police while distributing food to homeless people.
For nearly 15 years, the Houston chapter of the international charity Food Not Bombs has served vegetarian and vegan meals to about 100 to 150 homeless residents outside the city’s downtown public library four nights a week. volunteer Shea Dole told Business Insider.
But it wasn’t until earlier this year that the group started acquiring tickets from within the city, which Dore said the group was documenting on TikTok.
Since March, the group has collected 80 citations, Nick Cooper, another volunteer, told Business Insider. These citations relate to violations of a local ordinance passed in 2012 that prohibits distributing food to more than five people without the permission of the property owner, in this case the library.
Dore told Business Insider that the amount of each citation will be determined by the court, but could be up to $2,000 each. She said the group has not yet paid for the tickets as they plan to take each to court.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner’s office told Business Insider that the city is handing out tickets because Food Not Bombs’ practice of serving food outside the library after library hours is not. “This is because it is not safe for food seekers, service providers, pedestrians and library patrons,” he said. Library equipment. ”
Instead, the mayor wants the group to move to an approved location in the police station parking lot a half-mile away, Houston’s Chron.com reported.
But despite the mayor’s request, Food Not Bombs has refused to relocate, Dore told Business Insider.
“We don’t move,” said Dore, who has volunteered with the group for about 12 years. So it’s only natural.
Dore said the city’s proposed alternative location was not viable. One reason for this is that it is difficult for people with disabilities in the homeless community to get there. Additionally, Dore said many homeless residents do not trust police and do not want to congregate on police property.
“We’re on public property, we’re in a public space,” Dore told Business Insider about the group’s decision to remain in front of the library. “We’re really not hurting anyone.”
“We go out and serve people who are hungry, and we don’t think we need to ask permission from the city or the government to do that,” she added.
Dore said Food Not Bombs plans to wait until the end of the current mayor’s term, which ends this year. The group hopes that the new mayor, who will be elected in a run-off this month, will be more sympathetic to their ideals.
Ultimately, Dore said he wants to overturn the 2012 ordinance. But until then, she said, the group will continue to increase its citation numbers.
Watch now: Popular videos from Insider Inc.
Loading…