Food Not Bombs Still Serving Despite Controversy

For most of us, the last true weekend of summer means thoughts of returning to school, or switching gears for the rigors of work.

For the hungry, every day, weekend or not, means considering where the next meal comes from.

I stopped on the corner of Main and Liberty Streets Sunday to see if Food Not Bombs was delivering its regular shared meal, despite summons, court appearances and a state Board of Health hearing.

A few minutes late, two cars filled with Food Not Bomb members, mostly Wesleyan students, arrived with coffee, fruit, vegetables fresh from the garden and dessert. A few minutes later, a red pick-up truck delivered sandwiches.

Wesleyan student Abe Bobman, who received a summons earlier in the year for his work with the group, and just back from a summer working on an organic farm in Massachusetts, was there with peppers, eggplant and carrots from the farm.


(Wesleyan sophmore, Alex Ketchum, resident of the new "Food House" on campus.)

Elize Perlmutter, a Wesleyan sophmore who spent the summer in Middletown working at the Long Lane Farm under a Mellon grant, called the weekly meal "a testament to abundance" in this country.

Another sophomore, Alex Ketchum, who worked at a farm in Ireland all summer, enjoyed a bowl of vegetable stew as she told me about Wesleyan's commitment to food policy, including the establishment of a new residence based around the issues of food. The residence at 344 Washington Street, will host 11 students who are concerned about issues of food, food politics, nutrition and food distribution.

"It will be a center for students who are interested in the politics of food," Ketchum said. "But we really want to connect with the community on issues of health, nutrition and hunger."