90-year-old Arnold Abbot has vowed to continue feeding the homeless people in a Florida town, despite being threatened with jail for doing so. Mr Abbott’s only fear is that no-one will feed the homeless if he is jailed.
War veteran, Mr Abbott, was arrested and charged by police in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for handing out meals to homeless people in a park. His arrest sparked outrage world wide and drew international attention to the new laws.
He along with two other church ministers could receive a maximum 60-day custodial sentence and a $500 fine under a new law which bans people from meal sharing with the public.
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He told Russia Today: “I am not afraid at all. I was a combat infantryman for 2 1/2 years. I’ve spent 50 years fighting for civil rights for the minorities in this country. I don’t have the slightest fear of being arrested,”
“The only thing I am concerned about is that there would be nobody to feed the homeless outdoors, which is what I do – and what I intend to do as long as there is breath in my body.”
Advocates for the homeless are citical of he new regulations and say this is a way of implementing social cleansing and that simply passing laws will not improve the situation for anyone.
Meanwhile, undeterred by their arrests, Mr Abbott and ministers Dwayne Black and Mark Sims were back at church on Wednesday preparing meals to hand out to the homeless in Fort Lauderdale later that evening.
Niamh Harris
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