In North Carolina, a church group was threatened with arrest for handing out food to the homeless.
Love Wins Ministries serves breakfast to the homeless at a downtown park in Raleigh on weekends. But on Saturday they were told if they served the food, they would be arrested.
“We asked the officers for permission to disperse the biscuits to the over 70 people who had lined up, waiting to eat. They said no. I had to face those who were waiting and tell them that I could not feed them, or I would be arrested,” Rev. Hugh Hollowell wrote on the group’s website.
The police were enforcing a city ordinance that bans the distribution of food in any of the city’s parks.
Love Wins had permission to set up on the sidewalk as long as they didn’t block it and cleaned up after themselves. Now they will need to get a permit that costs $800 a day.
The city ordinance will be discussed Wednesday in town hall.
