90 Year Old Arrested For Feeding The Homeless

[Gromit]

// Two pastors and a 90-year old man have been arrested for feeding the homeless in public.

The pastors, Dwayne Black and Mark Sims along with Arnold Abbott, an advocate for the homeless, face a 60-day jail term and a $500 fine for breaking a new law passed by the city.
"One of police officers came over and said ‘Drop that plate right now,’ as if I was carrying a weapon,” Mr Abbott said.
"These are the poorest of the poor, they have nothing, they don't have a roof over their heads. How do you turn them away?”
It is estimated that there are 10,000 homeless people in Fort Lauderdale.

According to Mr Abbott, who runs a non-profit organisation called “Love Thy Neighbour”, the homeless are drawn to Fort Lauderdale because of the climate.
“The homeless people come here for the weather, they know they won’t freeze to death in Fort Lauderdale,” said Mr Abbott a retired jewellery salesman who won two Purple Hearts as an infantryman in the Second World War.
Fort Lauderdale imposed the new restrictions saying that the move would help tackle homelessness. //

Strange chaps the Yanks.

[Gromit]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/11210691/Prison-threat-for-90-year-old-who-fed-Florida-homeless.html

[AlwaysConfused]

utterly ridiculous!

[jno]

a let-them-starve law? I expect our home-grown legislators will be studying this intently.

[Gromit]

I suspect IDS is on the EasyJet website as we speak.

[Zeuhl]

One of the (many) contradictions in USA

Many citizens of the 'Land of the Free' have an inappropriate level of respect for Authority no matter how ruthless.

I think it's because the law abiding are sensitive that they are only a few miles and a few years from lawlessness and the 'wild frontier'

Stick someone in a uniform with a badge and when they say 'jump', a lot of people's first reaction is 'yessir'. And they give them guns!

And yet most of the Americans i know are (like the man in the OP) kind, sympathetic and generous when allowed to be

[sp1814]

The law placed restrictions on where food could be distributed and said volunteer groups were also legally obliged to provide portable lavatories.

I'm thinking that this might be a Republican state?

[Baldric]

Do we not have enough homeless on this side of The Pond, without being concerned about the Americans?

[jim360]

I don't think that's really the point, Baldric.

[Zeuhl]

Yes....

wasn't the Bush brother governor there a few years ago when George's election to President was helped along when a whole pile of votes from some less affluent and predominantly black neighbourhoods were discounted due to dodgy voting machines and 'hanging chads'?

[kvalidir]

I am concerned when any law is passed which might prevent a person with food giving it to someone who has none Baldric so yes I am concerned.

[Zeuhl]

/Do we not have enough homeless on this side of The Pond, without being concerned about the Americans? /

How many homeless do you need before you are unable to think about it any more?

[mikey4444]

"Examining 187 major cities across the country, the study found that more than half had laws banning sitting or lying down in public – a rise of 43 per cent since 2011"

Any country that resorts to passing these kind of laws ought to seriously question whether it has the right to call itself a democracy any longer.

America...the Land of the Free ? I don't think so.

[Gromit]

For the record, ForLauderdal's Council Manager (Mayor) is a Democrat.

[TWR]

What can you say?

[rockyracoon]

I'm sure I read somewhere that they are going to do the same thing in Westminster, ban on feeding the homeless.

[Gromit]

More info here

http://touch.sun-sentinel.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-81736052/

[ToraToraTora]

must be a law then gromit, you are usually fond of those.

[Clanad]

But... I can only assume that the naysayers on here are also infected with the NIMBY virus as well. (Not in My Back Yard).

If you had a nice home in a nice part of your village or city and a kind soul began feeding numerous homeless people infected with all kinds of diseases as well as being alcoholics, or durg addicts (or both) and all of their possessions are in a push cart, and this gathering to receive food occurred on your curb maybe twice a day and the homeless had no Port-Pottys and used your front hard, ya'll would be Ok with that? I don't think so...