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Community drops food, not bombs |
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Tuesday, 13 November 2007 |
 Evan J. Fetty, a senior graphic design major, and Jacob B. Vares, senior community and regional planning major, help themselves to food provided by the Food Not Bombs event, sponsored by Campus Antiwar Network. Photo by Anna Donlan
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by BRITTANY SPENCER
Intern News Reporter
For most, being arrested over 100 times is not an ideal background. However, many wouldn’t consider serving free food to be a criminal act.
Keith McHenry co-founded Food Not Bombs, a nonprofit group that takes food donations, finds prepackaged food thrown into dumpsters because it’s out of date and cooks it up for anyone walking by to eat.
McHenry has been arrested over 100 times for distributing food to groups of over 24 people, which is illegal without a permit.
The Food Not Bombs chapter in Boone and on Appalachian State
University’s campus, through the Campus Antiwar Network and local
volunteers, served food Friday on Sanford Mall from 11 a.m. to 12:30
p.m.
McHenry walked around the crowd, which showed up for the free food, and
spoke about his experiences with Food Not Bombs, which has chapters all
over the world.
“It’s so empowering, so impressive. I never though that Boone [would
have a Food Not Bombs chapter],” McHenry said. “What’s really cool is
people are organizing for peace and in 1980, the original eight
organizers would never have imagined it to have so many chapters.”
“I helped get food from all over town - really good and pristine food
past expiration date and some the day of expiration,” said Joe A.
Carroll, a senior creative writing major and volunteer for Food Not
Bombs.
“We are promoting a perspective on war and food plus community over
[war]. I think that Food Not Bombs is for anyone who wants to
participate and we need more volunteers especially in Boone,” Carroll
said.
Carroll has volunteered for Food Not Bombs previously in Morehead City and Seattle.
The array of food on Sanford Mall Friday included watermelon,
cantaloupe, pasta, beans, casseroles, bowls of salad, loaves of bread,
six trash bags full of bagels, cucumbers and coffee.
All the food served by Food Not Bombs chapters is vegetarian and vegan.
“I think food is a basic human right, and people should have it for
free and we should all be able to enjoy each other,” said E. Kaysie
Cozart, a junior music education major and Food Not Bombs volunteer.
“Trillions of dollars are spent on weaponry and war but people are
starving. We can come together as a community [with the Food Not Bombs
chapter] without a real leader but as a group.”
“I heard there was free food here and I made a b-line,” said Josh D.
Zich, a freshman graphic art major. “I never heard about [Food Not
Bombs] before but I totally agree with what it’s about and the food is
definitely good and even better since it’s free.”
“I think the government feels threatened by this movement because they
see it as a national security threat that may reduce military taxes,”
said McHenry. “We’re made insecure by a scarcity of resources that
doesn’t really exist in America and crime goes down because [people]
are fed and don’t have to worry, they’re calm.”
McHenry spoke at 1 p.m. Friday in Plemmons Student Union.
He shared his many experiences with a group of 45 listeners.
“August 15, 1988, in San Francisco, [the Food Not Bombs chapter was]
serving food and about 45 riot police came and arrested about five of
us for serving food without a permit, so the next time we served food
we marched down the street banging pots and pans, carrying food and 29
of us got arrested,” said McHenry. “It was big news covered on CNN,
[The New York Times], The London Times and even more.”
For more information on Food Not Bombs, visit the organization’s Web site at www.foodnotbombs.net.
Students or community members interested in the local chapter should e-mail
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