Food Not Bombs (FNB) is, according to their website, “a global grassroots movement aiming to defend and reclaim community, sovereignty and food justice from the jaws of poverty and war,” and the local chapter of FNB has been operating since 2005, providing free meals on Monday evenings. On Monday, March 4, they were told by a security guard that they needed a permit to continue operating as they have been.
Many community members planned to come support FNB on Monday, March 11, and over 50 people attended the protest at Confederation Square.
Myles Conner, a member of FNB Peterborough, addressed the crowd, stating that “nothing [had] been communicated” to them about what rules or bylaws were violated.
Trent Radio received a statement from the City of Peterborough, which read, “By-law 19-074 sets out the types of activities in parks that require a permit, such as erecting a structure and offering food in a park.”
The statement indicated that “by-law enforcement initially spoke with Food Not Bombs organizers on February 12 and followed up a couple of weeks later on whether they had applied for the necessary permit.”
Conner responded, telling Trent Radio that there is no record of this initial communication happening.
