Co-founder of “Food Not Bombs” Global, Arrested today

"Keith McHenry, the co-founder of the global movement “Food Not Bombs” was arrested and jailed by the Santa Cruz Police Department today for the crime of serving food to the unhoused community members. Approximately 10 officers of the Santa Cruz Police Department arrested Keith at approximately 10:00 am today, December 27, 2022, in River Street Parking Garage #10, 24 River Street, as he was setting up tables to serve a meal out of the intense rain.

This egregious treatment of this community hero comes just two days after Food Not Bombs served a free Christmas feast to over 500 unhoused persons in downtown Santa Cruz. Keith is being held at Santa Cruz County Jail facing two misdemeanor charges of blocking a parking space and loitering in a parking garage. The police also confiscated some equipment belonging to Food Not Bombs including tables, cups for coffee and sugar."

https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2022/12/27/18853618.php

#FoodNotBombs #Repression #antireport #mutualaid #FreeThemAll

MUTUAL AID CALL — PLEASE BOOST:

Hiii autonomous people - I decided to re-share this again. I hope everyone’s day is going well. I’ve actually never made a mutual aid call for me but the reality is that I’m scared. I was unjustly fired. A racist staff misconstrued things about me which led for me to be fired without even getting a chance to explain myself. The reality is that this racist staff targeted me because she couldn’t take advantage of a Native person. She expected me to do most of the laboring work and didn’t like it when I spoke up. I’m an undocumented person because I was displaced from my native land in MX due to settler-colonialism. Do you love avocados? Well — my land was stolen because my kin and ancestors traditionally harvested avocados. Avocados are even called bloody gems because of the awareness of land theft and genocide to harvest on stolen land. After I was able to benefit from DACA (a work permit that I have to renew every 2 years for around $1000+) - I was able to show up for Black & Indigenous asylum seekers in Tijuana & Chiapas in MX. Having DACA gave me the opportunity to find a job that didn’t exploit me physically such as when I used to work as a farmworker & in factories. It gave me the capacity to be able to have the energy to join in supporting those who experience the brunt of State violence. I and other homies would pitch in funds and liberate items to organize safe fundraiser parties in the Bay Area prior to the pandemic. We never turned anyone away for lack of funds due to our experience in growing up low-income. Because of those fundraisers we were able to support asylum seekers who seeked asylum in the US & some in Canada after being denied asylum in the US. Back then as youth we showed fund transparency on our personal IG accounts - but now as adults we have learned to create a separate account for specific mutual aid calls. Later after that - I autonomously made a mutual aid call to support undocumented indigenous farmworkers in 2020 when the pandemic started and also due to the wildfires in the Central Coast in California. I come from a farmworker family. I was angry in seeing viral posts tokenizing how strong farmworkers are for not quarantining and working under hazard air conditions — that’s not being “strong” — that’s what happens when you’re undocumented: the State exploits you when you have no other choice. Because of community support (and those who later joined the collective) we were able to raise over $60K. Those funds were directly distributed to families in envelopes of cash aid of $300 to $500 since undocumented people didn’t qualify for stimulus checks and undocumented farmworkers are laid off during the winter without access to unemployment benefits. The people who provide some of the food in our tables live in survival mode. We also distributed medication, backpacks for children of farmworkers, and KN95 masks for wildfires. Fund transparency has been posted in the collective DESOLASOL.COLECTIVA account on IG. Because of my experience as a Native femme in the US empire — I understand my privilege as a DACA recipient and I have used it to show up for those who experience State violence due to a document. Being fired from my job has left me with so much stress. I somehow need to raise funds to renew my DACA and basically have funds to survive. I’m not sure if I even qualify for unemployment benefits due to being fired. Being disabled makes it hard to find a job that works with my capacity. I developed chronic pain because of farmwork and I hope to find a job where it doesn’t make my body pain worse. Not having a job will also impact my capacity in showing up for those I’m in community with. This winter I & the homies were hoping to raise funds again to support undocumented indigenous farmworkers since the harvest comes to an end without them having access to funds due to agriculture being seasonal. I’ve sadly communicated that I won’t be able to join in mutual aid because I’m scared about my current situation. If anyone is at capacity please help me raise funds for my survival. My CashApp is $NebulaAzul. Thank you for taking the time to read this. I wrote this to give y’all an idea of who I am and that I’m not just some random scammer asking for funds. I hope White anarchists / abolitionists / accomplices in collective liberation show up for me. Please boost this if you’re not at capacity to donate. I hope each and one of you is safe and protected under this unjust system ♡

#MutualAid #CollectiveCare #WeGotUs