First Amendment

Federal Judge Rules Houston Violated First Amendment Rights of Food Not Bombs Activists

Houston police issued over 100 tickets to Food Not Bombs activists for violating an anti–food sharing ordinance. That violated their First Amendment rights, a judge ruled.

C.J. Ciaramella | 11.6.2026 3:15 PM

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A federal judge ruled Tuesday that the city of Houston violated the First Amendment when it tried to stop activists from giving away free food outside a downtown library and issued more than 100 tickets to them.

U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Texas Andrew S. Hanen found that Houston's enforcement of an ordinance prohibiting charitable food giveaways in public was unconstitutional as applied to the Houston chapter of Food Not Bombs (FNBH), a volunteer group that distributes free food in cities worldwide. 

The ruling is the latest in a series of legal battles between Food Not Bombs chapters across the country—who argue that feeding the needy is expressive conduct under the First Amendment—and city officials, who say that unpermitted food distribution creates safety, liability, and litter problems.

"This week's ruling confirms what we have known all along: feeding our neighbors should not be a crime," Randy Hiroshige, a staff........

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