San Francisco Police continue arrests of Food Not Bombs food servers. Ammiano holds a hearing on the issue at the Finance Committee of the Board of Supervisors.
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by Tabeson for PNN
"They said--freeze! You're all under arrest... Arrest that soup, and those bagels... And those bags of bread..." Keith Salvage, poet (an excerpt) "We'll be on the steps of City Hall in a silent vigil....for as long as Mayor Brown's orders for the arrests remain..." Sister Bernie, San Francisco. Though community support to end the intense political harassment and senseless attempts to criminalize grassroots organizations like Food Not Bombs (FNB), who feed the working poor and homeless, keeps growing, the San Francisco Police Department has stepped up its low level warfare against anyone serving food at the UN Plaza. In the wake of Mayor Brown's re-election campaign, his police forces have arrested thirteen FNB volunteers since October 20, 1999, while enforcing even tougher restrictions on the group's ability to serve hot meals to the homeless at the Civic Center. Here in San Francisco, FNB has a ten year history of confrontations with the SFPD. Food Not Bombs is a non-violent, direct action group that has served hundreds of thousands of free vegetarian meals to hungry people since 1988. "Over the years we have been arrested at least 1000 times," admitted Sasha Vodnik, a loyal volunteer with FNB. "We have also created a community forum to talk about the root causes of and solutions to our society's economic disparities." Throughout the last seven weeks the SFPD resumed persecution of FNB's free meal gatherings, resulting in five more arrests. On Friday, October 10, 1999, at precisely 6:00 pm, police task forces ambushed the hungry crowd and two FNB volunteers in the process of distributing free bagels and fresh fruit juice to the tired hoard of low-income and homeless people at the UN Plaza. Following the October 22nd National Day of Protest Against Police Brutality rally between Mission and 16th streets which led hundreds of marching protesters to City Hall stairs, some fifty SFPD officers in full riot gear and heavy duty armaments marched in just before the commencement of the FNB's free community vegetarian meal; two more volunteers were snatched and taken into custody. Keith Savage, a notable poet and fellow homeless comrade of mine, had just received his FNB ration for that day and was shaken down at the scene by the invading San Francisco police sqauds. They condemned the bagel he held and his bowl of hot soup was also arrested. The next series of arrests occurred on Tuesday, October 19th, during a demonstration for the release of political prisoner Mumia Abu Jamal, a national outcry rally at Union Square marching from Market Street to the UN Plaza which later prompted a stay against the journalist's scheduled execution. Two additional FNB volunteers were arrested following that event while handing out hot soup and bread to hungry homeless people at the Civic Center. "I'm talking about the soup... that Food Not Bombs soup... I had some in my hands... yea, I had some in my mouth..." The election season police crackdown is not merely illegal; it's a cruel crime against those who must stand in line for soup. As a homeless resident I stand in soup lines Monday through Sunday, week after week; and as we speak, I will be in line for my lunchbag at any given soup kitchen around the city. The soup lines at St. Anthony's Kitchen now span two city blocks and it takes almost forty-five munites before my turn in line to receive a meal.
"....and so,in front of city Hall... upon the balcony---What do we see? Willie... Willie Brown--the Mayor of this town... He says--yes, arrest those bagels plus that soup... and take them up in a single scoop... away! I say, take it all away... you shall not feed the homeless... or a pigeon in this town... not while I'm around...", sang the poet, Salvage.
"We are close...we are very close." These were the last words of Board of Supervisors president, Tom Ammiano, at the December 8th hearings of the finance and labor committee. The hearings were held to consider San Francisco's long history of confiscating food distributed by Food Not Bombs. "It is not only a question of permits; it is really a political question, that no city official has yet fully addressed." Speakers at the hearing made it clear that the public should not be sidetracked by rhetoric that complicates the main issue, which is that charitable food servers like FNB be allowed unfettered access to feed the working poor and starving homeless citizens of San Francisco.
"Those laws could be amended, both local and state laws," Mayoral Candidate Tom Ammiano said, on his way out of the session. "Until it is resolved, I want to continue working on this issue." There was no action taken from the committee hearings. |