Florida police threaten arrest under new 'homeless hate law'

© Reuters/Max Whittaker

Florida police handed out citations and threatened to arrest two priests and a 90-year-old veteran volunteer for feeding the homeless. A recently passed city ordinance makes sharing food a citable offense.

Fort Lauderdale police removed at least three volunteers, as well as the Sunday lunch they were serving to several dozen homeless people, citing a controversial new ordinance that prohibits food sharing. Passed in October, the measure was created to try to cut down the growing population of homeless people in Fort Lauderdale.

In video footage from Sunday, three police officers arrive and interrupt the feeding program by removing 90-year-old Arnold Abbott, the Rev. Canon Mark Sims of St. Mary Magdalene Episcopal Church, and the Rev. Dwayne Black of the Sanctuary Church. A chorus of protest erupts from the crowd and follows the officers as they take the men to their patrol cards - "" someone in the crowd says.

"" says another.

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Then, a police officer explains to the men: "."

The ban on sharing food is part of city officials' recent efforts to cut down on the burgeoning downtown homeless population. The most recent law - passed by a 4-1 vote - limits where outdoor feeding can be located. It can't be situated near another feeding site; it has to be at least 500 feet from residential property; and feed program organizers must seek permission from property owners for sites in front of their buildings.

It's now illegal to feed the homeless in Fort Lauderdale. You could go to jail for up to 60 days if caught. SMFH

- Joel Franco (@OfficialJoelF) November 3, 2014

Officials describe the new laws as "" but opponents have labeled them "," according to The Sun-Sentinel.

"" Sims told The Sun Sentinel. "."

The program is run by Love Thy Neighbor. Its founder, 90 year-old Abbott, is a World War II veteran and has served food to homeless people for 20 years.

The latest ordinance follows others in Fort Lauderdale that banned the homeless from soliciting at the city's busiest intersections, outlawed sleeping on public property downtown, toughened laws against defecating in public, and made it illegal for people to store personal belongings on public property.

"," Mayor Jack Seiler told the Sun-Sentinal, defending the law and its intent. "."

EVERYTHING about Florida is despicable. Fort Lauderdale Passes Law That Restricts Feeding Homeless People http://t.co/v1Qiy3P55S

- Big Ol' TDs (@cindasmommy) November 4, 2014

City officials say they are working to assist the homeless by providing housing to 22 people identified as chronically homeless, creating an outreach program run through the police department. Also included in the city's new budget is $25,000 to give people a one-way bus ticket to reunite with their families.

However, homelessness and those who volunteer to help them is being criminalized in towns and cities across America. A report released by the National Coalition for the Homeless last month found that 21 cities have restricted sharing food with the homeless, and 10 other cities are in the process of doing so.