I recently wrote about the proposed ordinance to stop groups from publicly feeding the homeless. Last week there was an update to this discriminatory ordinance. Mayor Nutter’s proposal to feed the homeless outside of City Hall is not a better option that feeding them on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Federal Judge Yohn said that the parkway is more dignified than the metal apron of City Hall.
Yohn said his temporary injunction blocking enforcement of the new city ordinance would stay in effect until he filed a formal written opinion justifying his decision. But the judge made it clear that his intention is to block enforcement for at least a year to give the city and representatives of various religious and secular homeless service providers the chance to create a long-term solution that would end distributing food to the homeless in public.
This injunction is a blessing to the people living on the streets and to the organizations that provide food to them. The ministry of many churches is to minister to those less fortunate than themselves. Thank you to Chosen 300, Kings Jubilee, Philly Restart and the Welcome Church for filing this suit against the city and getting a result that we can all live with.
You can read a full article in the Philadelphia Inquirer here: http://articles.philly.com/2012-07-13/news/32649367_1_homeless-people-religious-groups-public-feedings
