In Houston, homelessness volunteers are in a stand-off with city
authorities
Send a link to a friend
[May 11, 2023]
By Evan Garcia
HOUSTON, Texas (Reuters) - In Houston, Texas, a nonprofit group has been
in a stand-off with local authorities over their feeding of homeless
people in front of the city's library.
The Houston chapter of Food Not Bombs, an international organization
which promotes sharing vegetarian food with others, has been issued
tickets by police 23 times since March.
The group argues that the city's homeless rely on them and they have
been feeding them four times a week for more than ten years in that
location. But local authorities say it has made the area unwelcoming for
families and put them off visiting the library.
As the United States battles with an epidemic of homelessness in the
wake of the pandemic, the clash goes to the heart of difficulties
authorities and advocates face in balancing the desire to help those in
need while also considering local residents.
The citations issued by Houston police carry a fine of between $50 and
$2,000, under a 2012 city ordinance that requires anyone feeding more
than five people on public or private property to obtain permission from
the property owner.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/May/11/images/ads/current/castlemanor_sda_FINANCIAL_2017.png)
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said he started enforcing the ordinance
in March because the environment surrounding the library - located
across the street from Turner's City Hall office - had deteriorated.
"Families, parents, are now more reluctant to bring their children and
to walk through that population," Turner said. "And so we are losing a
critical asset for families, for children, and for others who need to
utilize the library."
He said the group could instead use an alternative location - the nearby
parking lot of a Houston police station, where the city provides food to
the homeless.
Food Not Bombs volunteers said they had not seen any evidence of an
uptick in violence in the area of the library and that they were not
comfortable with the suggested alternative location, feeling the police
would have too much sway there.
[to top of second column]
|
![](../images/051123PIX/news_a20.jpg)
People line up for donated meals near
the Houston Central Library, where the city is enforcing a law
restricting the feeding of groups in public, Houston, Texas, U.S.,
April 24, 2023. REUTERS/Evan Garcia
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/May/11/images/ads/current/atlantabank_lda_SFARM_2023.png)
"We come out here, we serve, we go, and we do it with dignity. And
then you got a lot of homeless that are scared of police officers,"
said volunteer Shere Dore, adding that many experiencing
homelessness also rely on the library to charge their phones, access
the internet, use the restroom or simply escape the weather.
For Billy Joe Garcia, a 38-year-old man from Stafford, Texas, who
has experienced homelessness for the past two years, the services
provided by Food Not Bombs offer him sustenance and social
connection.
"Having a place like here to go to ... is crucial," Garcia said.
"Because you get to see new people and you get to have a decent way
of living."
Soon after Food Not Bombs received their first ticket on March 1, a
volunteer filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Houston,
challenging the constitutionality of the city's food-sharing
ordinance.
In the meantime, Turner is committed to enforcing the law.
"We have said to those who have been feeding people in front of the
central library... that that will be no more," Turner said. "And if
you persist, even after we have provided a much more suitable
location, then citations will be issued."
(Reporting by Evan Garcia, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)
[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/May/11/images/ads/current/ldn_sda_NILA_012823.png) |