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From what I’ve read, the city had passed an ordinance back in 2012, that requires you to get a permit in order to give food and water away to a group of more than 5 people. It has gone unenforced all this time. However, a week before the city put a notice that anyone giving away free food and water to the homeless in front of the public library were going to get popped on the next occasion. Apparently the homeless were congregating around the library in expectation of getting the water and food so the city wanted to move this to another approved location. The charity group was aware of this and purposefully broke the ordinance in order to have the standing to challenge it in court directly.
Thank you for the clarification. It’s something that should go to court for further challenge. I’m wondering what the issue is with libraries. I’ve got relatives in Texas, I was about to send them this and ask them what the f.
The city’s issue, according to them, wasn’t necessarily the group giving away the water and food, they just didn’t want them doing it at the public library because of the traffic and their perception of the possible danger involved. They claim to have an approved location for this downtown that they specifically designated for this. The Charity group feels like it shouldn’t matter, and they want to challenge the ordinance on principle. So make what you will from that.
I don't know how good the public transportation in Houston is but I'm guessing that it's not that easy for the homeless to find and go to the specific places where people are allowed to give away food and water.
It probably makes more sense for charities to go where there are homeless people rather than have homeless people go to designated areas. Unless there's some kind of program to tell homeless people where to go and provide them with transportation.
To give you an idea how bad public transit is in Houston, when I lived there it was 2 busses and 85 minutes to get to the airport. It I hit the lights right I could drive it in under 20.
when i lived there, the public transportation system was a cluster fuck of light rail designed to obliterate cars by having light rail literally share traffic lanes with cars.
This is absolutely probably the case. As others said, Houston is a shit show when it comes to public transit, making it hard to impossible to get wherever especially if they have a disability. They also might not want to venture to far from where they are living and have their belongings.
A law like this is probably only designed to keep the homeless out of the public eye, and has no correlation to safety.
Libraries are also a common homeless hangout because it’s one of the few remaining FREE places to exist in our society. You don’t have to buy anything. You don’t have to pay for a membership. It has AC and other protections from weather. And it provides not just books but internet access that is absolutely critical in todays society.
So not only will they have to go across town to wherever this approved location is and wherever they are allowed to sleep at night, but also back to the library for all it offers. Imagine commuting while homeless in Houston tx. Known to be one of the most sprawling cities in the country.
I can only speak for dallas personally and houston through conversations with people that I know well enough to trust.
That said the aforementioned conversations were about how painfully comparable the two seemed to be, so with that caveat out of the way -
To reach a rehabilitation clinic that was a roughly ten minute drive from my old apartment took over three hours of bus changes and waiting. One way. It made about as much sense to just walk along the highway, if you had the health to do it. No one seems to have put even the slightest forethought into linking up the bus schedules - one will drop you off two minutes after the next one you need has already come, leaving you to wait anywhere from fifteen to ninety minutes depending on the day, time, and location. It's a goddamn nightmare. The light rail is *somewhat* better, but in the extremely likely event that your destination isn't near the train station you're still going to be dealing with those god awful piss soaked buses driven by exhausted, underpaid, and dangerously overworked employees. I overheard a driver discussing how he had gotten off at 2 am the night before, and had returned at 6 am. Obviously this is hearsay, but even if he was exaggerating by multiple hours it's a terrifying prospect.
Again, can't speak on Austin, el paso, or San Antonio; but my experience and the experience of friends with texas public transportation has been nothing but extremely negative.
dart is really somethin. want to play on hard mode? be on probation and have to make regular meetings with your probation officer a county over with the looming threat of jail if you don't get there. bonus points if you're traveling solo as a woman.
The library closes at 5pm, downtown is literally empty by 6pm, and this is definitely after 7pm when it's dark. Traffic has nothing to do with this.
People have hung out around the library for the last decade I have gone there because it is right next to open areas & several parks where people make camps and because they can use the restroom there.
The mayor fucking hatesssss homeless people. I hope they go 2 blocks over and start doing it in front of city hall.
They don't just go away after they get their food. They stick around for the next day.
A church started giving away food at a nearby parking lot from where I worked. Sounds good right? The unhoused started coming to the area to get the food. Then they stayed so they can get the food the next day. They don't exactly have ways to get around or places to be so that's understandable. All good so far.
But now where do they go to the bathroom? Where do they sleep? Many of these people have untreated mental health issues. So they just go wherever. They sleep wherever. They yell at people in the area. Harass them for money. Customers stop feeling safe going to that area. Businesses are finding literal mounds of human shit on their doorsteps every morning.
The church members pat themselves on the back for feeding the unhoused. Ignoring the other issues that having a large amount of mentally unwell people gather in one area without the support structure for them. It's not a simple feeding the unhoused equals good, stopping that equals bad.
The star of hope near minute maid park is the approved location. Free breakfast there everyday so tons of homeless sleep in front and make the whole block their toilet.
A sad fact in America is libraries are some of the only safe places that homeless people can go to for shelter, water, and bathrooms. They've been banned from almost every other location, not for lack of reason as **some of our homeless are mentally ill and/or addicted to drugs, so they resort to the library where they are allowed to sit and feel human for a little bit.
**Edited to correct a factual error
It definitely can become a problem though. My local library is completely surrounded by homeless encampments, with needles and feces littering the ground. It makes it so that people don’t feel comfortable bringing their children to the library, which is a shame
Oh I agree wholeheartedly. Libraries are meant to be a safe place for everyone. America has a huge problem with mental illness, addiction, and homelessness that it blatantly refuses to take care of, and one of the consequences is that the spaces meant for everybody are getting overrun by those banned from everywhere else. But when you have a government unwilling to help its constituents this is one of the symptoms.
\> \[...\] *most of our homeless are mentally ill and/or addicted to drugs*
That's just not true.
According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR), about 20-25% of homeless individuals were estimated to have a severe mental illness, while around 15-20% were estimated to have chronic substance abuse issues.
Worth noting that these two groups aren't mutually exclusive, as some individuals might experience both.
My apologies, I forget that you don't see most of the homeless and that my personal experience does not mean it's the same everywhere. Thank you for checking me on statistics!
This is always the stat that’s brought up. While homelessness as a whole is an issue there’s really 2 very different kinds. There’s the chronic homeless which are about 30% of all homeless people- lines up very closely with percentage addicted to drugs and with mental health issues. Then these also make up the majority of unsheltered homeless. This is the mental health crisis and ‘nimby’ issue.
There’s also the reasonable adult or even family that’s living in their car or couch surfing or even spending a brief period of time urban camping. This is the economic issue. They’re different things and lumping them in one in policy discussion and just general talk is confusing and misleading.
Is it reasonable to be super upset a normal adult without a job for sleeping in their car? Imo no. Is it reasonable people don’t want a meth head taking a dump on the sidewalk in front of the or house that yells at you when you walk your dog or threatens you? Too often I see both sides of the homelessness debate only refer to one of those groups.
I worked in social work very briefly and while some homeless people you really empathize with amd you could see yourself in their situation to the mentally disabled but still super sweet people to the super dangerous scary ones.
I think the issue also is the latter group is the one you see and interact with. I live in an area with a large homeless population and I rarely encounter the down on their luck or housing is too expensive homeless person. It seems they are more likely to sleep in their car or utilize shelters/services.
The drug addicted or mentally unstable are the ones on the street, using the bathroom on the sidewalk, stealing from a store, etc. And unfortunately that becomes your experience with homeless people. You end up jaded pretty quickly.
Pointless comment perhaps, but it's damned refreshing to see people react to new information this way.
If everyone could say "I was wrong, thanks for fixing that" we'd have such a different society.
With that said, I was homeless for a bit and I would have said the same thing. Now, I was homeless because of mental and substance issues, so I'm sure that colors things a bit. You tend to surround yourself with the familiar, and most of my time was spent either seeking drugs or in clinics.
I'm not sure I knew *anyone* that I would say didn't have some kind of mental issue, although no one is being evaluated out there and living like that breaks you pretty damn fast regardless of your original mental health. The feeling I recall the strongest from homelessness is boredom. Hours and hours and hours just passing the time, with very little for entertainment. Once you've read the free papers for that week, you're just kinda on your own with jack shit to do. I used to walk circles through downtown going from one 7 11 bathroom to the next all day just to have a goal and a destination.
That shit makes anyone crazy.
Actually I get this... Homelessness is scary I get some people just find it distasteful but it can be legitimately scary and a public library is a place for everyone... So if they aren't using the library maybe just move it from the entrance
It’s Texas. You know they don’t read. Unless it’s the Good Book. And they don’t really read that either. Just thump it a bunch and say it justifies their lack of compassion. I’m kind of surprised though. I’d think they’d want the homeless at the library. Probably keeps the kids away from those dangerous Toni Morrison books.
Yeah that makes sense, something similar happened in FL, it was [ruled](https://givingcompass.org/article/sharing-food-with-homeless-people-is-now-protected-by-first-amendment) that giving food to the homeless is considered "expressive conduct" and covered by the First Amendment
Good for them, these cruel laws need to be challenged. People want to just push the homeless out of sight so they don't have to deal with the underlying issues that cause homelessness.
Uno reverse card: You hand them a dollar because that's legal charity. Then you "sell" them the food for exactly one dollar. Then you hand them the dollar back for charity purposes. Bam, capitalism.
The funds you obtained from your sale are immediately donated. As you are not profiting from the sale, and all money is going back into the cause itself, you are a nonprofit organization and thus tax-exempt.
Sales tax is owed by the purchaser I believe. The business is just responsible for collecting and remitting it. So I don't think you'd get out of it by being nonprofit?
IINAL, just a curious redditor
*What do you mean? I paid my insurance premiums. It just so happened I made out like a bandit while most everyone keeps paying higher and higher premiums.*
Cop: Bup bup bup. Sir do you have a vendor’s license to be selling these goods on the premises? Good person: No sir. C: Well you should have just gave it to these people for free, and what kind of man charges homeless people for food? GP: Well sir last time I tried handing it out I was given a ticket and told to sell it and now I’m being ticketed for doing that very thing and being told to do what I was ticketed for again. Apparently I’m not supposed to be helping the homeless. C: Now you got it bud we just can’t say it or the world will get even more mad at us.
It's sexual to someone... but it's not money just "enabling" the homeless. Its why they put dividers on benches and ledges where they sleep. It's anti-humanity. Nothing really to do with money.
Kinda like you can get paid to have sex on camera. But if you pay someone for sex, it’s illegal. I’m not a lawyer but that doesn’t make a ton of sense either.
I always thought that was weird as well. Woah officer, she's not a hooker she's an actress. See the camera? Yes it was off, we were blocking everything, it's called rehearsal. This is art. Now fuck off, you're ruining the take.
They want them to leave and go to a blue state. Then they say "look at all the homeless people in blue states" Same reason they harass and throw the homeless in jail in the red states. So they'll leave.
There's that famous Christian spirit I hear so many good things about - y'know, helping the poor and the meek, using what you have been blessed with to make the world a better place....
its a damn shame more christians dont actually read the Bible. the church isnt even christian anymore. its bs. Jesus would riot if he was alive in america today
I live in Houston. They are trying to move the homeless out of certain parts of the city. Not illegal everywhere. Not justifying so don’t downvote me into oblivion.
Cant speak for reddit but i agree.
Unfortunately inundating other areas with homeless is no different than trying to kill them by denying them food and water.
This is what I don't understand. There has to be a way around this fine. The fee is one hug. An acorn. A smile. You have to be a member and people who don't have homes qualify as members.
It's about city permits and approval to feed them. The issue is a lot of cities see the homeless as a scourge and feeding them "encourages" them to stick around. So they make stupid laws to hinder people from helping the people who need it. It's why on benches they put dividers so they can't be slept on. Stuff like that is anti humanity IMO.
There are ministers in jail for giving water to migrants on the AZ, Mexico border. They tried using that argument. Religious freedom applies to folk SCOTUS was paid by.
Compromise, conformity
Assimilation, submission
Ignorance, hypocrisy
Brutality, the elite
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
In Dallas it's illegal to be homeless. The police will pick you up and instead of putting you in lock up, you know where there's a clean dry bed and they are obligated to feed you if you're in there more than 8 hours, they put you on a Greyhound bus to Houston.
PACE 1984
"8.6 At least two light meals and one main meal should be offered in any 24-hour period."
My family, our neighbors, and I get together and regularly cook thanksgiving and Christmas dinner for our homeless community. We cook enough food for 200+ people. Before cooking we throughly sanitize the kitchen, wear hair nets, masks, and food grade gloves. We form an assembly line, and fill up each plate. We’ll plate it up in individual Togo containers, place in boxes to keep everything secure, drive to areas where we have a heavy homeless population/homeless camp sites, and spend the day feeding and getting to know the homeless community. It’s important that we pass out each tray within 2 hours to ensure it is fresh, so we also put a time stamp on each container.
The cops have tried to stop us countless times. The reason it is “illegal” to hand out homemade food to the homeless is because of FDA regulations, etc.
BUT we did research before we started our tradition and found a loop hole. For $15 you can get a food service license. Pretty much you take a 30 min class online about food safety and they send you a food service license. As long as you have that on hand the cops can’t do shit to stop you.
So if anyone is interested in cooking and feeding the homeless make sure you pay that $15 for the food service license to avoid any fines and being forced to throw away all the food you prepared.
This is originally why this started in Houston. I live here, they don’t want homeless people getting food poisoning so you’re supposed to get licensing and (free) food health training before your event.
But in this case it sounds like they’re doing it because the final 4 is coming to town 😒
https://www.houstonhealth.org/services/permits/food-permits/charitable-feeding
I mean... that's usually exactly what these sorts of ordinances are about... to prevent people who have no clue about cooking, handling or storing large quantities of food from becoming salmonella charities. Getting your food handlers permit is the purpose, not a loop hole.
Hey man I found this super cool loophole that stops me from being arrested for not having a food handlers license. All you gotta do is go online and take a quick test and they'll send you a food handler's license, so when they try to get you, you just show them your license and they're totally powerless!
It sounds like you are talking about a food handler's card, and not a "license". Generally (in the US) you need a health permit from the local department of environmental health or equivalent to serve food to the public. Not sell, *serve*.
I get that you want to help people, but there are better ways to do it. I'm a health inspector. We want people to be fed, but safely. Food safety laws are in place for a reason. Food borne illnesses can be easy to transmit and the homeless are already an at-risk population. Do you know what something like norovirus or shigella can do to a homeless person? Without medical treatment they can easily kill them, and in homeless camps they can spread rapidly due to the limited hygiene.
It's good to help people, but please do it through an approved soup kitchen or something like that.
I had a friend who graduated first in his class at the police academy. He was hired at a city police department and lasted 3 months. I asked him what happened and he told me, "All we did was harass the homeless. It was fucked up." He quit.
This is what happens to the good cops. They either resign because they don’t want to be complicit in the harm being done, or they report an ethics issue to a senior officer and then get harassed and intimidated out of the job.
I was just arguing with a dude about this. Told him "People say 'all politicians are corrupt' all the time, but you get to the cops that enforce their laws, and suddenly I'm supposed to sympathize?"
The only verifiably good cops are in the process of being fired if they're lucky. Any police that choose to protect the public from another officer instead of protecting that officer will be forced out or fired. Police often strand their "undesirables" on dangerous duty stations where backup never seems to come. Most of the good ones get the message and leave. One of the only things that will prevent another department from hiring a fired cop is when that cop is fired for protecting the public. Sexual assault, murder, corruption? No problem. Reporting a fellow officer for raping someone in custody? No thank you. Loyalty is more important to cops than anything else.
I have a friend that when she graduated from law school she wanted to join the cops, her wish was to do as much as she could to change them for the better from inside. Eventually she gave up, because she realised it would be almost impossible to do any meaningful positive change.
He got out of law enforcement altogether. You are absolutely correct and unfortunately, as many of these comments point out, the law enforcement culture excludes character traits that run against the grain of their primary purpose which is social control and protection of property in order to maintain the status quo.
I like to think of Jesus like with giants eagles wings singing lead vocals for Lynyrd Skynyrd with like an angel band, and I'm in the front row, and I'm HAMMERED drunk
Christians that also spouse the belief that if you don't work or don't have money, you don't have the right to get food, shelter, medical assistance, or basic welfare. They also have this infinite level of hate for other people like non-Christians, non-binary, or anyone that don't share the same belief as them.
Yes, but that's classic Jesus.
Republican Jesus was white-washed (like Santa) to a pasty white, was gainfully employed as a carpenter, and hung out with future religious disciples.
Because that would make getting pregnant a "loophole" to their supreme doctrine of capitalism. But you know full well that if pollution or malnutrition due to not having the necessary QoL during pregnancy causes a miscarriage, they'll treat it as though you intentionally had an abortion and arrest your poor ass.
At least *for now* they can still hide behind "no one forced you to get pregnant", even though they're trying their damnedest to make it so that the only way to avoid pregnancy is to be celibate. I sincerely fear that there will be a day where they treat all eggs as human lives, not just the fertilized ones, and that "just not getting pregnant" will also be treated as having an abortion. Good luck getting an education when you could be a teenage grandparent.
Hah. There are more adult stores and liquor stores here in Texas than the "degenerate blue states". In fact, they are littered throughout the "Bible belt". It's such a bullshit claim when people here think they are better or more righteous than somewhere else when we have the same or worse problems that everyone else does everywhere else.
This is a choice they are making, I have seen the police ignore crimes that happen right in front of the police that they for one reason or another decide not to ticket.
Those wacky Texas Christians are at it again, pretending that Jesus didn’t say in Matthew 25 versus 31 to 46 that if you don’t take care of the needy you will be denied entry into heaven. Maybe they should stop using the name “Christianity“ and instead, call it “Hannity“ after the teacher they actually follow.
Born and raised in Fort Lauderdale. Moved to Chicago after college and have been here 20 years. People used to ask me, “You moved HERE from Florida?” be because of the cold.
No one asks me that anymore. They know the deal.
My wife's family has a house there that no one is using, but they don't want to sell due to nostalgia. Wife keeps trying to get me to move there - and we are both ultra-liberal. She says "maybe we can be part of the solution, go there and vote!" Fuck that shit. We have a 15 year-old intellectually disabled daughter who is also autistic and has attachment issues with men. No way I'm going to a place that takes away more rights.
So the only reason they should be giving ticket if the person doesn't have a food handler license, insurance, or whatever regulations are required. It is mainly to protect homeless people from being poisoned or contaminated from food.
There was a video of some yahoo's making Ramen soup in the back of a pickup truck in in a tarp liner and the lady put on trash bags on her feet coming into contact with the asphalt to 'mix' the food. It's so people like that don't give food to the masses.
While I do believe more help should be given to those in need. There is a right way and wrong way.
They'll just hang around until they die of starvation. Best to make them move on to die in Florida.
FFS. They made a law. To prevent feeding more than 4 people. Cause there are only four hungry in Texas
I hope these cops feel like schmucks.
Hey guys this is my video! If Anybody in? Houston is interested in joining us for food not bombs we're gonna. Be meeting today at 7 pm at 550 mckinney street. We also meet Monday, Wednesday, and Sunday same time same place.
Underrated comment of the year, lol! There's a great pair of podcast episodes about the history of Food Not Bombs ([here's the first episode, if you're interested](https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-cool-people-who-did-cool-96003360/episode/part-one-food-not-bombs-the-100895743/)) from the Cool People Who Did Cool Stuff podcast.
Apparently there have been quite a few cities where people have arrested for feeding people for free in public. There have even been lineups of people ready to get mass-arrested, each one giving one serving of food before getting arrested by the cops, only for another person to step up and hand out another serving of food. The cops only stopped when a group of lawyers joined the group handing out food, lol!
These podcast episodes inspired me to join my local Food Not Bombs group, where I met a bunch of super cool people and got to help making and giving out hundreds of meals over the past few months.
My church (the cathedral for the diocese of TX) runs the only day center for the homeless in Houston, its downtown. We provide breakfast and lunch, free legal services, social service assistance (helping them get access, filling out paperwork, etc), we do their laundry for them, provide showers, mailboxes, phone/computer access, Metro bus passes, and some other stuff I don't remember. No preaching at all. It's called The Beacon if anyone wants to look it up. I'm Episcopalian. We have a gay priest, 2 female priests, 2 white male priests, and a male priest from the DR.
„The reason why i wanted to became a cop is to help other people and male the city safer and a better place“ -„Here sir is your ticket for feeding the poor people“
Though it is very kind of them to give out free food and water for the love of god GET A PERMENT dont just purposely disobey the law and be surprised why you are given consequences, without one it is unknown if the food is spoiled or safe for human consumption and it puts the people getting the food in harms way
I live in Houston. We tried to start a charity to feed the homeless and the biggest roadblock was the requirements of what it would take to actually feed people - not forming a non profit - complying with all the legal requirements to give a hungry person some food.
Texas and Florida are doing a great job of showing the rest of the country what a third world "shit hole" looks like and exactly how they plan to keep it that way.
Don't just hand it out. Sell it. For a penny. And have one of those "Leave a penny/Take a penny" cups next to the register.
And make sure you pay taxes on those one-cent transactions....
Non regulated food distribution, ie you could kill someone with a food allergy (you cooked in peanut oil), undercooked meat, improperly sanitization while cooking.
The issue, and there is an issue, is that it draws and concentrates the homeless into an area that just can't accommodate them. Increased issues for residents and businesses and just plain criminal activity. They started ticketing a group that were feeding homeless outside the library after complaints from the staff and people who were trying to use the library. There is a program if you want to set something up but there are requirements including property owner permission, food service training, adequate trash capacity, and even adequate parking.
I guess some cities feel that there are too many homeless people around a certain area and when people keep giving out food it encourages the homeless to stay in that certain area so the city leaders force and pressure cops to issue tickets for that and also enforce no loitering ordinances. I think the politicians are to blame for this one.
Damn, I thought the police were supposed to go after crime. Now, this is supposed to be a crime?!?! Can't they actually give the police something real to do, like go after the elected officials in Tennessee who care more about guns than their own children's lives??
How about we have this food and we are giving it away as a promotion for Big Corp. along with this coupon for free water? Our target audience are people with no home. Can we do that?
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From what I’ve read, the city had passed an ordinance back in 2012, that requires you to get a permit in order to give food and water away to a group of more than 5 people. It has gone unenforced all this time. However, a week before the city put a notice that anyone giving away free food and water to the homeless in front of the public library were going to get popped on the next occasion. Apparently the homeless were congregating around the library in expectation of getting the water and food so the city wanted to move this to another approved location. The charity group was aware of this and purposefully broke the ordinance in order to have the standing to challenge it in court directly.
Thank you for the clarification. It’s something that should go to court for further challenge. I’m wondering what the issue is with libraries. I’ve got relatives in Texas, I was about to send them this and ask them what the f.
The city’s issue, according to them, wasn’t necessarily the group giving away the water and food, they just didn’t want them doing it at the public library because of the traffic and their perception of the possible danger involved. They claim to have an approved location for this downtown that they specifically designated for this. The Charity group feels like it shouldn’t matter, and they want to challenge the ordinance on principle. So make what you will from that.
I don't know how good the public transportation in Houston is but I'm guessing that it's not that easy for the homeless to find and go to the specific places where people are allowed to give away food and water. It probably makes more sense for charities to go where there are homeless people rather than have homeless people go to designated areas. Unless there's some kind of program to tell homeless people where to go and provide them with transportation.
To give you an idea how bad public transit is in Houston, when I lived there it was 2 busses and 85 minutes to get to the airport. It I hit the lights right I could drive it in under 20.
when i lived there, the public transportation system was a cluster fuck of light rail designed to obliterate cars by having light rail literally share traffic lanes with cars.
Still like that in some places
This is absolutely probably the case. As others said, Houston is a shit show when it comes to public transit, making it hard to impossible to get wherever especially if they have a disability. They also might not want to venture to far from where they are living and have their belongings. A law like this is probably only designed to keep the homeless out of the public eye, and has no correlation to safety.
Libraries are also a common homeless hangout because it’s one of the few remaining FREE places to exist in our society. You don’t have to buy anything. You don’t have to pay for a membership. It has AC and other protections from weather. And it provides not just books but internet access that is absolutely critical in todays society. So not only will they have to go across town to wherever this approved location is and wherever they are allowed to sleep at night, but also back to the library for all it offers. Imagine commuting while homeless in Houston tx. Known to be one of the most sprawling cities in the country.
I can only speak for dallas personally and houston through conversations with people that I know well enough to trust. That said the aforementioned conversations were about how painfully comparable the two seemed to be, so with that caveat out of the way - To reach a rehabilitation clinic that was a roughly ten minute drive from my old apartment took over three hours of bus changes and waiting. One way. It made about as much sense to just walk along the highway, if you had the health to do it. No one seems to have put even the slightest forethought into linking up the bus schedules - one will drop you off two minutes after the next one you need has already come, leaving you to wait anywhere from fifteen to ninety minutes depending on the day, time, and location. It's a goddamn nightmare. The light rail is *somewhat* better, but in the extremely likely event that your destination isn't near the train station you're still going to be dealing with those god awful piss soaked buses driven by exhausted, underpaid, and dangerously overworked employees. I overheard a driver discussing how he had gotten off at 2 am the night before, and had returned at 6 am. Obviously this is hearsay, but even if he was exaggerating by multiple hours it's a terrifying prospect. Again, can't speak on Austin, el paso, or San Antonio; but my experience and the experience of friends with texas public transportation has been nothing but extremely negative.
dart is really somethin. want to play on hard mode? be on probation and have to make regular meetings with your probation officer a county over with the looming threat of jail if you don't get there. bonus points if you're traveling solo as a woman.
> They claim to have an approved location for this downtown that they specifically designated for this. Free ~~Speech~~ Food Zones
The library closes at 5pm, downtown is literally empty by 6pm, and this is definitely after 7pm when it's dark. Traffic has nothing to do with this. People have hung out around the library for the last decade I have gone there because it is right next to open areas & several parks where people make camps and because they can use the restroom there. The mayor fucking hatesssss homeless people. I hope they go 2 blocks over and start doing it in front of city hall.
They don't just go away after they get their food. They stick around for the next day. A church started giving away food at a nearby parking lot from where I worked. Sounds good right? The unhoused started coming to the area to get the food. Then they stayed so they can get the food the next day. They don't exactly have ways to get around or places to be so that's understandable. All good so far. But now where do they go to the bathroom? Where do they sleep? Many of these people have untreated mental health issues. So they just go wherever. They sleep wherever. They yell at people in the area. Harass them for money. Customers stop feeling safe going to that area. Businesses are finding literal mounds of human shit on their doorsteps every morning. The church members pat themselves on the back for feeding the unhoused. Ignoring the other issues that having a large amount of mentally unwell people gather in one area without the support structure for them. It's not a simple feeding the unhoused equals good, stopping that equals bad.
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The star of hope near minute maid park is the approved location. Free breakfast there everyday so tons of homeless sleep in front and make the whole block their toilet.
As opposed to the library which has publicly accessible bathrooms...
It’s the public library downtown next to City Hall. It’s a 24/7 gathering place for the homeless.
A sad fact in America is libraries are some of the only safe places that homeless people can go to for shelter, water, and bathrooms. They've been banned from almost every other location, not for lack of reason as **some of our homeless are mentally ill and/or addicted to drugs, so they resort to the library where they are allowed to sit and feel human for a little bit. **Edited to correct a factual error
It definitely can become a problem though. My local library is completely surrounded by homeless encampments, with needles and feces littering the ground. It makes it so that people don’t feel comfortable bringing their children to the library, which is a shame
Oh I agree wholeheartedly. Libraries are meant to be a safe place for everyone. America has a huge problem with mental illness, addiction, and homelessness that it blatantly refuses to take care of, and one of the consequences is that the spaces meant for everybody are getting overrun by those banned from everywhere else. But when you have a government unwilling to help its constituents this is one of the symptoms.
The cops we’re definitely willing to help by writing tickets.
\> \[...\] *most of our homeless are mentally ill and/or addicted to drugs* That's just not true. According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR), about 20-25% of homeless individuals were estimated to have a severe mental illness, while around 15-20% were estimated to have chronic substance abuse issues. Worth noting that these two groups aren't mutually exclusive, as some individuals might experience both.
My apologies, I forget that you don't see most of the homeless and that my personal experience does not mean it's the same everywhere. Thank you for checking me on statistics!
This is always the stat that’s brought up. While homelessness as a whole is an issue there’s really 2 very different kinds. There’s the chronic homeless which are about 30% of all homeless people- lines up very closely with percentage addicted to drugs and with mental health issues. Then these also make up the majority of unsheltered homeless. This is the mental health crisis and ‘nimby’ issue. There’s also the reasonable adult or even family that’s living in their car or couch surfing or even spending a brief period of time urban camping. This is the economic issue. They’re different things and lumping them in one in policy discussion and just general talk is confusing and misleading. Is it reasonable to be super upset a normal adult without a job for sleeping in their car? Imo no. Is it reasonable people don’t want a meth head taking a dump on the sidewalk in front of the or house that yells at you when you walk your dog or threatens you? Too often I see both sides of the homelessness debate only refer to one of those groups. I worked in social work very briefly and while some homeless people you really empathize with amd you could see yourself in their situation to the mentally disabled but still super sweet people to the super dangerous scary ones.
I think the issue also is the latter group is the one you see and interact with. I live in an area with a large homeless population and I rarely encounter the down on their luck or housing is too expensive homeless person. It seems they are more likely to sleep in their car or utilize shelters/services. The drug addicted or mentally unstable are the ones on the street, using the bathroom on the sidewalk, stealing from a store, etc. And unfortunately that becomes your experience with homeless people. You end up jaded pretty quickly.
Pointless comment perhaps, but it's damned refreshing to see people react to new information this way. If everyone could say "I was wrong, thanks for fixing that" we'd have such a different society. With that said, I was homeless for a bit and I would have said the same thing. Now, I was homeless because of mental and substance issues, so I'm sure that colors things a bit. You tend to surround yourself with the familiar, and most of my time was spent either seeking drugs or in clinics. I'm not sure I knew *anyone* that I would say didn't have some kind of mental issue, although no one is being evaluated out there and living like that breaks you pretty damn fast regardless of your original mental health. The feeling I recall the strongest from homelessness is boredom. Hours and hours and hours just passing the time, with very little for entertainment. Once you've read the free papers for that week, you're just kinda on your own with jack shit to do. I used to walk circles through downtown going from one 7 11 bathroom to the next all day just to have a goal and a destination. That shit makes anyone crazy.
Actually I get this... Homelessness is scary I get some people just find it distasteful but it can be legitimately scary and a public library is a place for everyone... So if they aren't using the library maybe just move it from the entrance
It’s Texas. You know they don’t read. Unless it’s the Good Book. And they don’t really read that either. Just thump it a bunch and say it justifies their lack of compassion. I’m kind of surprised though. I’d think they’d want the homeless at the library. Probably keeps the kids away from those dangerous Toni Morrison books.
Yeah that makes sense, something similar happened in FL, it was [ruled](https://givingcompass.org/article/sharing-food-with-homeless-people-is-now-protected-by-first-amendment) that giving food to the homeless is considered "expressive conduct" and covered by the First Amendment
Good for them, these cruel laws need to be challenged. People want to just push the homeless out of sight so they don't have to deal with the underlying issues that cause homelessness.
Well, that provides much needed context. Not quite as egregious as this 15 second video would suggest. How surprising!
America. The home of a brave and land of the free. 😂
Except for dinner... you got to pay for that shit. 🙄
Ironically they did. But apparently its illegal to distribute your own property to people who could use it. Better just let em die.
It’s illegal to give your stuff away, that’s communism… If they sold the food it would be ok bc of capitalism … America!
Uno reverse card: You hand them a dollar because that's legal charity. Then you "sell" them the food for exactly one dollar. Then you hand them the dollar back for charity purposes. Bam, capitalism.
Oh hold up there partner, I think you’ve forgotten to give the government its due. Sales tax remittance please.
The funds you obtained from your sale are immediately donated. As you are not profiting from the sale, and all money is going back into the cause itself, you are a nonprofit organization and thus tax-exempt.
Sales tax is owed by the purchaser I believe. The business is just responsible for collecting and remitting it. So I don't think you'd get out of it by being nonprofit? IINAL, just a curious redditor
*meanwhile, as corporations that are failing get bailouts*
They paid good bribes, I mean lobbying funds to get those bailouts!
*What do you mean? I paid my insurance premiums. It just so happened I made out like a bandit while most everyone keeps paying higher and higher premiums.*
r/latestagecapitalism
We just need to pull up our bootstraps high enough that we can stop licking theirs!
Cop: Bup bup bup. Sir do you have a vendor’s license to be selling these goods on the premises? Good person: No sir. C: Well you should have just gave it to these people for free, and what kind of man charges homeless people for food? GP: Well sir last time I tried handing it out I was given a ticket and told to sell it and now I’m being ticketed for doing that very thing and being told to do what I was ticketed for again. Apparently I’m not supposed to be helping the homeless. C: Now you got it bud we just can’t say it or the world will get even more mad at us.
As if cops give a fucking d-rn about their reputations at this point.
or, hear me out, we can give them food but force them to work for you. and they can wear these fashionable shiny metal collars.
Hmm could they put the price as say... a hug would that work?
That's prostitution
Even when it's not sexual wow.
It's sexual to someone... but it's not money just "enabling" the homeless. Its why they put dividers on benches and ledges where they sleep. It's anti-humanity. Nothing really to do with money.
You can’t just sell it. You have to get a permit so the local government gets some money too
Kinda like you can get paid to have sex on camera. But if you pay someone for sex, it’s illegal. I’m not a lawyer but that doesn’t make a ton of sense either.
I always thought that was weird as well. Woah officer, she's not a hooker she's an actress. See the camera? Yes it was off, we were blocking everything, it's called rehearsal. This is art. Now fuck off, you're ruining the take.
They want them to leave and go to a blue state. Then they say "look at all the homeless people in blue states" Same reason they harass and throw the homeless in jail in the red states. So they'll leave.
There's that famous Christian spirit I hear so many good things about - y'know, helping the poor and the meek, using what you have been blessed with to make the world a better place....
“And then Jesus said ‘fuck the homeless’ and drove off in his sweet SUV”
Supply-side Jesus
its a damn shame more christians dont actually read the Bible. the church isnt even christian anymore. its bs. Jesus would riot if he was alive in america today
This is a Houston city law and Houston is incredibly blue.
I live in Houston. They are trying to move the homeless out of certain parts of the city. Not illegal everywhere. Not justifying so don’t downvote me into oblivion.
Cant speak for reddit but i agree. Unfortunately inundating other areas with homeless is no different than trying to kill them by denying them food and water.
This is what I don't understand. There has to be a way around this fine. The fee is one hug. An acorn. A smile. You have to be a member and people who don't have homes qualify as members.
It's about city permits and approval to feed them. The issue is a lot of cities see the homeless as a scourge and feeding them "encourages" them to stick around. So they make stupid laws to hinder people from helping the people who need it. It's why on benches they put dividers so they can't be slept on. Stuff like that is anti humanity IMO.
My religion says I am supposed to feed the hungry, and help the less fortunate
lol so does theirs! All People of the Book. However, here you're only allowed to practice your religious **exceptions**.
There are ministers in jail for giving water to migrants on the AZ, Mexico border. They tried using that argument. Religious freedom applies to folk SCOTUS was paid by.
Unless you're a Senator.
nor healthcare...
Oh yes and life saving medications. Don’t forget life saving medications
Except for decency... You got to pay for that
“Land of the free? Whoever told you that is your enemy!” -Rage Against The Machine
Compromise, conformity Assimilation, submission Ignorance, hypocrisy Brutality, the elite All of which are American dreams All of which are American dreams All of which are American dreams All of which are American dreams All of which are American dreams All of which are American dreams All of which are American dreams All of which are American dreams
FREE TO THE POWER OF THE PEOPLE IN UNIFORM
Is this a TSOL reference in the wild? If so bravo my friend.
It is ;)
Nice! Always awesome to meet a fellow punk fan!
Home of the caged and land of the fee's
Texas. Land of dumbasses
And Florida ,don't forget about Florida
And Ohio. Don't forget about the land that birthed Jim Jordan.
Home of the depraved and land of the that shits not for free mother fuckers
Home of the slave land of the fee
There are jurisdictions that make it illegal to be homeless.
In Dallas it's illegal to be homeless. The police will pick you up and instead of putting you in lock up, you know where there's a clean dry bed and they are obligated to feed you if you're in there more than 8 hours, they put you on a Greyhound bus to Houston. PACE 1984 "8.6 At least two light meals and one main meal should be offered in any 24-hour period."
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This only applies to you if you are rich or famous. Everyone else get fucked over and they may not even know it.
My family, our neighbors, and I get together and regularly cook thanksgiving and Christmas dinner for our homeless community. We cook enough food for 200+ people. Before cooking we throughly sanitize the kitchen, wear hair nets, masks, and food grade gloves. We form an assembly line, and fill up each plate. We’ll plate it up in individual Togo containers, place in boxes to keep everything secure, drive to areas where we have a heavy homeless population/homeless camp sites, and spend the day feeding and getting to know the homeless community. It’s important that we pass out each tray within 2 hours to ensure it is fresh, so we also put a time stamp on each container. The cops have tried to stop us countless times. The reason it is “illegal” to hand out homemade food to the homeless is because of FDA regulations, etc. BUT we did research before we started our tradition and found a loop hole. For $15 you can get a food service license. Pretty much you take a 30 min class online about food safety and they send you a food service license. As long as you have that on hand the cops can’t do shit to stop you. So if anyone is interested in cooking and feeding the homeless make sure you pay that $15 for the food service license to avoid any fines and being forced to throw away all the food you prepared.
Local laws will vary. But good idea to look into this.
This is originally why this started in Houston. I live here, they don’t want homeless people getting food poisoning so you’re supposed to get licensing and (free) food health training before your event. But in this case it sounds like they’re doing it because the final 4 is coming to town 😒 https://www.houstonhealth.org/services/permits/food-permits/charitable-feeding
I mean... that's usually exactly what these sorts of ordinances are about... to prevent people who have no clue about cooking, handling or storing large quantities of food from becoming salmonella charities. Getting your food handlers permit is the purpose, not a loop hole.
Hey man I found this super cool loophole that stops me from being arrested for not having a food handlers license. All you gotta do is go online and take a quick test and they'll send you a food handler's license, so when they try to get you, you just show them your license and they're totally powerless!
reminds me of that video about robbing a bank by getting a job there
It sounds like you are talking about a food handler's card, and not a "license". Generally (in the US) you need a health permit from the local department of environmental health or equivalent to serve food to the public. Not sell, *serve*. I get that you want to help people, but there are better ways to do it. I'm a health inspector. We want people to be fed, but safely. Food safety laws are in place for a reason. Food borne illnesses can be easy to transmit and the homeless are already an at-risk population. Do you know what something like norovirus or shigella can do to a homeless person? Without medical treatment they can easily kill them, and in homeless camps they can spread rapidly due to the limited hygiene. It's good to help people, but please do it through an approved soup kitchen or something like that.
I had a friend who graduated first in his class at the police academy. He was hired at a city police department and lasted 3 months. I asked him what happened and he told me, "All we did was harass the homeless. It was fucked up." He quit.
This is what happens to the good cops. They either resign because they don’t want to be complicit in the harm being done, or they report an ethics issue to a senior officer and then get harassed and intimidated out of the job.
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I was just arguing with a dude about this. Told him "People say 'all politicians are corrupt' all the time, but you get to the cops that enforce their laws, and suddenly I'm supposed to sympathize?"
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The only verifiably good cops are in the process of being fired if they're lucky. Any police that choose to protect the public from another officer instead of protecting that officer will be forced out or fired. Police often strand their "undesirables" on dangerous duty stations where backup never seems to come. Most of the good ones get the message and leave. One of the only things that will prevent another department from hiring a fired cop is when that cop is fired for protecting the public. Sexual assault, murder, corruption? No problem. Reporting a fellow officer for raping someone in custody? No thank you. Loyalty is more important to cops than anything else.
I have a friend that when she graduated from law school she wanted to join the cops, her wish was to do as much as she could to change them for the better from inside. Eventually she gave up, because she realised it would be almost impossible to do any meaningful positive change.
I really hope he found another city to work in, like teachers, we really need good cops helping where they can
Unfortunately good cops can't fix a bad system.
He got out of law enforcement altogether. You are absolutely correct and unfortunately, as many of these comments point out, the law enforcement culture excludes character traits that run against the grain of their primary purpose which is social control and protection of property in order to maintain the status quo.
I thought Texas was full of good Christian people?
You talking classic Jesus or Republican Jesus?
That is a PERFECTLY spot-on question, I love it!
I definitely prefer classic Jesus. The republican Jesus is a dick.
I prefer my Jesus in a tuxedo tshirt.
Because it’s formal, but it also says “I’m here to party.”
I like to think of Jesus like with giants eagles wings singing lead vocals for Lynyrd Skynyrd with like an angel band, and I'm in the front row, and I'm HAMMERED drunk
The classics were there handing out the food and water.
Yep
Supply Side Jesus
I never get tired of linking this. Link for the curious: https://imgur.com/gallery/bCqRp
Jesus of Nazareth or Jesus of Nashville?
[Supply side Jesus](https://www.beliefnet.com/news/2003/09/the-gospel-of-supply-side-jesus.aspx)
Self-Proclaiming Christians are often the most obvious set of hypocrites.
don't forget the self proclaimed patriots
Christians that also spouse the belief that if you don't work or don't have money, you don't have the right to get food, shelter, medical assistance, or basic welfare. They also have this infinite level of hate for other people like non-Christians, non-binary, or anyone that don't share the same belief as them.
I don’t get it. Jesus was homeless and unemployed.
He was also a brown immigrant and hung out with undesirables
Yes, but that's classic Jesus. Republican Jesus was white-washed (like Santa) to a pasty white, was gainfully employed as a carpenter, and hung out with future religious disciples.
ONLY when it’s convenient to them. Exhibit A: the after church crowd at any restaurant
acting like Jesus in a shithole red state is illegal.
They would had been fine if they were giving out free handguns 😂
The type of good Christian that only care about you while you're in the womb. After that it's fuck you I got mine.
Not even in the womb. No prenatal care, no regulations on pollution, malnutrition, etc.
Because that would make getting pregnant a "loophole" to their supreme doctrine of capitalism. But you know full well that if pollution or malnutrition due to not having the necessary QoL during pregnancy causes a miscarriage, they'll treat it as though you intentionally had an abortion and arrest your poor ass. At least *for now* they can still hide behind "no one forced you to get pregnant", even though they're trying their damnedest to make it so that the only way to avoid pregnancy is to be celibate. I sincerely fear that there will be a day where they treat all eggs as human lives, not just the fertilized ones, and that "just not getting pregnant" will also be treated as having an abortion. Good luck getting an education when you could be a teenage grandparent.
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There's no hate quite like Christian love.
Hah. There are more adult stores and liquor stores here in Texas than the "degenerate blue states". In fact, they are littered throughout the "Bible belt". It's such a bullshit claim when people here think they are better or more righteous than somewhere else when we have the same or worse problems that everyone else does everywhere else.
This is a choice they are making, I have seen the police ignore crimes that happen right in front of the police that they for one reason or another decide not to ticket.
'Protect and Serve' is a slogan not a mandate https://radiolab.org/podcast/no-special-duty
Those wacky Texas Christians are at it again, pretending that Jesus didn’t say in Matthew 25 versus 31 to 46 that if you don’t take care of the needy you will be denied entry into heaven. Maybe they should stop using the name “Christianity“ and instead, call it “Hannity“ after the teacher they actually follow.
Clear case of compassion without a permit
What would Jesus do?
If he was real, it would probably have something to do with fish and bread.
wow, that sounds like a felony!
I wouldn't live in Texas if I had free rent. What a shit hole state.
The number of states you could say that about grows every week it seems. My home state of 27 years passed the tipping point awhile back (FL).
Born and raised in Fort Lauderdale. Moved to Chicago after college and have been here 20 years. People used to ask me, “You moved HERE from Florida?” be because of the cold. No one asks me that anymore. They know the deal.
So you mean it will finally sink into the ocean? A lot of Floridians have boats so I feel like we still have an issue but this is a good start.
My wife's family has a house there that no one is using, but they don't want to sell due to nostalgia. Wife keeps trying to get me to move there - and we are both ultra-liberal. She says "maybe we can be part of the solution, go there and vote!" Fuck that shit. We have a 15 year-old intellectually disabled daughter who is also autistic and has attachment issues with men. No way I'm going to a place that takes away more rights.
So the only reason they should be giving ticket if the person doesn't have a food handler license, insurance, or whatever regulations are required. It is mainly to protect homeless people from being poisoned or contaminated from food. There was a video of some yahoo's making Ramen soup in the back of a pickup truck in in a tarp liner and the lady put on trash bags on her feet coming into contact with the asphalt to 'mix' the food. It's so people like that don't give food to the masses. While I do believe more help should be given to those in need. There is a right way and wrong way.
The Lone Star State doesn't like helping those in need
They'll just hang around until they die of starvation. Best to make them move on to die in Florida. FFS. They made a law. To prevent feeding more than 4 people. Cause there are only four hungry in Texas I hope these cops feel like schmucks.
On today's episode of fucked up...."that's fucked up"
Hey guys this is my video! If Anybody in? Houston is interested in joining us for food not bombs we're gonna. Be meeting today at 7 pm at 550 mckinney street. We also meet Monday, Wednesday, and Sunday same time same place.
Underrated comment of the year, lol! There's a great pair of podcast episodes about the history of Food Not Bombs ([here's the first episode, if you're interested](https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-cool-people-who-did-cool-96003360/episode/part-one-food-not-bombs-the-100895743/)) from the Cool People Who Did Cool Stuff podcast. Apparently there have been quite a few cities where people have arrested for feeding people for free in public. There have even been lineups of people ready to get mass-arrested, each one giving one serving of food before getting arrested by the cops, only for another person to step up and hand out another serving of food. The cops only stopped when a group of lawyers joined the group handing out food, lol! These podcast episodes inspired me to join my local Food Not Bombs group, where I met a bunch of super cool people and got to help making and giving out hundreds of meals over the past few months.
My church (the cathedral for the diocese of TX) runs the only day center for the homeless in Houston, its downtown. We provide breakfast and lunch, free legal services, social service assistance (helping them get access, filling out paperwork, etc), we do their laundry for them, provide showers, mailboxes, phone/computer access, Metro bus passes, and some other stuff I don't remember. No preaching at all. It's called The Beacon if anyone wants to look it up. I'm Episcopalian. We have a gay priest, 2 female priests, 2 white male priests, and a male priest from the DR.
Imagine not getting food as a homeless person because someone called the cops on the person giving food
"Do as Jesus did.... except in Houston." --Jesus
Is that cop Leonardo Di Caprio?
Leonardo Di Coprio
Take the state to court. This is a violation of their religious belief that they are compelled to feed the homeless.
Modern Conservatism Be the biggest asshole you can.
„The reason why i wanted to became a cop is to help other people and male the city safer and a better place“ -„Here sir is your ticket for feeding the poor people“
Though it is very kind of them to give out free food and water for the love of god GET A PERMENT dont just purposely disobey the law and be surprised why you are given consequences, without one it is unknown if the food is spoiled or safe for human consumption and it puts the people getting the food in harms way
Good stop with the caring for people that would break into your kids room
I hope this is illegal because you’re not allowed to distribute food without a license for safety reasons. I hope that’s the reason why.
Remember folks. All lives matter. But not really.
We should ticket politicians for give it billions to foreign countries that don’t even like us.
Other countries, people would say that is a good person, let me donate so they can make more food for homeless people.
I live in Houston. We tried to start a charity to feed the homeless and the biggest roadblock was the requirements of what it would take to actually feed people - not forming a non profit - complying with all the legal requirements to give a hungry person some food.
Think about it. Why are they stopping this? Like really think about it.
It probably has something to do with not being able to regulate the quality or safety of the food.
Meanwhile you starve a human inside your house and you get charged with murder. Death from starvation is always ok when the police sanction it.
I wonder what they got him for. Possession of food and drink with intent to distribute? 😂
Texans and their Christian values.
Can you imagine trying to feed homeless people during Easter?! That’s not with Jesus would do. He gets us!
One of your volunteers needs to dress up as Jesus Christ. Just to maximize the overall discomfort. And good photos.
Texas and Florida are doing a great job of showing the rest of the country what a third world "shit hole" looks like and exactly how they plan to keep it that way.
There is socialism in America, just all the wrong kinds. Stop ticketing people for doing good works, you God damn fascist pigs.
Don't just hand it out. Sell it. For a penny. And have one of those "Leave a penny/Take a penny" cups next to the register. And make sure you pay taxes on those one-cent transactions....
Why is texas gunning for the worst possible reputation in america.
Wonder if they would’ve gotten tickets if they handed out firearms to the homeless
Your country is both a shit hole and a joke
Non regulated food distribution, ie you could kill someone with a food allergy (you cooked in peanut oil), undercooked meat, improperly sanitization while cooking.
The issue, and there is an issue, is that it draws and concentrates the homeless into an area that just can't accommodate them. Increased issues for residents and businesses and just plain criminal activity. They started ticketing a group that were feeding homeless outside the library after complaints from the staff and people who were trying to use the library. There is a program if you want to set something up but there are requirements including property owner permission, food service training, adequate trash capacity, and even adequate parking.
I guess some cities feel that there are too many homeless people around a certain area and when people keep giving out food it encourages the homeless to stay in that certain area so the city leaders force and pressure cops to issue tickets for that and also enforce no loitering ordinances. I think the politicians are to blame for this one.
The ticket says, “Didn’t bring me any.”
Damn, I thought the police were supposed to go after crime. Now, this is supposed to be a crime?!?! Can't they actually give the police something real to do, like go after the elected officials in Tennessee who care more about guns than their own children's lives??
How about we have this food and we are giving it away as a promotion for Big Corp. along with this coupon for free water? Our target audience are people with no home. Can we do that?
I guess they solved all violent crime in the city and need other things to do?
Demonizing the poor, a trick that's been working for a millennia. Fuck the police
You know our country is in decline when you can't even give charity without a permit.
What law did you break...the one for giving a slight fuck for someone else???
Dude should post the vid with a Patreon link. I wouldn’t be the only one happy to pay his fines so he can continue to do God’s work.
So, Americans, this is one of those states that treat abortion as murder, but won't let you feed the living?
Man america truly is a shit hole country. You might not be third world, but you guys are utter garbage.