Activists of the Food Not Bombs initiative decided today to temporarily suspend their activism due to the ongoing repression in the country. The initiative was engaged in solidarity with the homeless and people with economic problems throughout 2020 and 2021. At the height of the repression, in spite of threats of violence from the punishers, every weekend there was a place in the center of Minsk where you could get a free portion of hot food and warm clothes.
The initiative Food Not Bombs started in Belarus in 2006 as a protest against militarism of the Belarusian state, which was willing to spend huge sums of money on military and Interior Ministry, but was not able to support the basic needs of the society. During its existence, hundreds of people took part in the initiative, and the number of people who were supported amounts to thousands.
The need for FNB still exists, but the success of destroying grassroots initiatives makes solidarity extremely dangerous and difficult. During the protest, activists of the initiative have already been detained and jailed for short term arrests. The commitment of many activists to anarchist views could not but be ignored by the punitive structures.
We just want to wish collective members good luck and thank everyone who has been involved in the fight against poverty all these years! We are proud of you!
Food is a right, not a privilege!
In January 2021, we interviewed the members of the collective, which you can find on our website – https://pramen.io/ru/2021/01/intervyu-s-anarhistskoj-initsiativoj-eda-vmesto-bomb/
