ROSWELL, NM –– Food Not Bombs Roswell (FNBR) sued the City of Roswell for violating FNBR’s constitutional right to free speech by prohibiting the group from sharing free meals as part of its political demonstrations at Pioneer Plaza. The lawsuit was filed in the 5th Judicial District Court by the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty (NMCLP), Smith and Majanovic Law, LLC, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico.

FNBR founding member Jocelyn Smith said, “We believe no one in our community should go hungry when we have the resources to feed everyone. All we want is to get back out to Pioneer Plaza and keep eating and talking with our neighbors about how we can build a world where there is no more hunger, no more poverty, and much more peace.”

For over a year, FNBR members had been gathering at Pioneer Plaza to share free meals, distribute flyers and printed materials, and engage community members around anti-war and pro-human rights issues. FNBR shares food as a form of political protest to show that society can and should end hunger and poverty by redirecting our collective resources from the military and war toward basic human needs. 

Despite conducting peaceful political activity openly and without incident for over a year, the city has restricted FNBR’s right to gather at Pioneer Plaza, citing a city ordinance that prohibits food distribution in public spaces without a permit. The city has not previously enforced this ordinance against other individuals or groups engaging in similar food-sharing activities in public spaces—raising serious concerns about selective enforcement.

“There’s no better way to combat all the death, the destruction, and the bombs in this world than by caring for one another –– by sharing food,” said Roswell Community Organizer, Jeffrey Cabana.

Last month FNBR’s attorneys sent a letter to the city explaining that these gatherings are protected political expressions and that a city ordinance requiring a permit is unconstitutional. After the city failed to respond, the group felt they had no choice but to file a lawsuit to protect their right to share their message.

The complaint asks the court to: 

• Declare that FNBR’s practice of sharing meals in a public space is a protected form of speech;
• Declare the city’s ordinance requiring a permit unconstitutional, especially as applied to FNBR’s demonstrations; and
• Issue an injunction immediately allowing FNBR to return to Pioneer Plaza to continue their mission of community support and peace.

“Food Not Bombs Roswell has a constitutional right to demonstrate in public spaces and express their belief that food is a human right, including by sharing food with the community at Pioneer Plaza,” said NMCLP Public Benefits Attorney, Marco Alarid White. “The City of Roswell cannot impose a permit requirement that unlawfully restricts that protected speech and assembly.”

The complaint can be found here.