Three days after a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction temporarily overturning Mayor Michael Nutter’s controversial ban on feeding the homeless in public, church and other advocacy groups were happily dishing out meals near LOVE Park.
The ban, which took effect June 1, prohibited anyone from feeding homeless people in public on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway or elsewhere, limiting the activity to an apron on the north side of City Hall.
While the Nutter administration claimed the regulation was part of a long-term measure to address homelessness, specifically aimed at restoring dignity and ensuring food safety and handling standards, critics said it was merely an excuse to push the poor out of sight, especially in light of the recent opening or relocation of several new museums to the Parkway area. Some groups also complained that it infringed on their religious freedom, as in some faiths charitable giving is an important tenet.
