Philadelphia plan to curb food handouts draws protests

Opponents of Mayor Nutter's hard line on mass outdoor food handouts rallied Thursday to discourage city health officials from enacting restrictions on their particular form of charity.

Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the Municipal Services Building across from City Hall on Thursday afternoon, with volunteers serving food to the homeless and participants filming the police filming them. One minor scuffle led to an arrest.

The spectacle preceded a Philadelphia Board of Health hearing regarding a new proposal, backed by city Health Commissioner Donald F. Schwarz, to require training and permitting for organizations distributing food to people outdoors.

On Wednesday, Mayor Nutter announced a related proposal to prohibit outdoor public feedings on city parkland - which includes the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, where some of the more visible feedings take place.

Pastor Brian Jenkins, founder of Chosen 300 Ministries, opened the public hearing, held on the 16th floor of the Municipal Services Building, with a direct rebuke of the plan.

"We are not moving. We are totally against the legislation. It is clear this is not about a health issue," Jenkins said. "It is about getting the homeless people off the Parkway."

Critics say the city wants to clear the homeless from the Parkway in advance of the opening of the new Barnes Foundation museum this spring, though the effort to better regulate outdoor feedings has been going on for at least five years. Supporters, including some leading homeless advocates, say indoor feedings offer clients more dignity and a better chance to get the help they need.

The hearing was part of the Board of Health process for adopting new regulations. The regulations were proposed Feb. 9, followed by a 30-day period for public comment and Thursday's public hearing. The Board of Health meets Thursday and is expected to either adopt the regulations as proposed or amend them based on public input.

Caroline Steinberg, of Food Not Bombs, was flabbergasted by the plan. "There are not nearly enough organizations fighting hunger in Philadelphia, but these regulations would effectively disappear many organizations that fight hunger," she said.

"We're fulfilling a role to provide a service the city doesn't provide. And it doesn't cost you a dime."

A number of speakers who experienced periods of homelessness also condemned the plan.

"The food at the shelter is not palatable," said James Womer. "What is wrong with you people?"

Wayne Hill agreed, saying that he preferred the hot meals distributed outdoors along the Parkway. "You can't get a hot meal with a food stamp."

The protest extended to the floor of City Council earlier in the day, where Councilwoman Jannie L. Blackwell, who holds an annual picnic to feed the homeless at City Hall, criticized Nutter's approach.

"All of you know this is my issue," she said. "One of my staff said to me today: 'My goodness, what if Jesus were here during this time trying to spread some fishes and some loaves of bread?' He'd be in trouble because he'd have to have a license for that, too, I guess."

She said she hoped Nutter would reconsider the plan.