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Hungry for Peace
Food Not Bombs is one of the most important social change movements you've probably never heard of. For the last three decades, Food Not Bombs groups in hundreds of communities all over the world have shared free, nutritious food with the hungry and provided meals to people protesting war, poverty and the destruction of the environment.If this sounds good to you. "Hungry for Peace" will give you all the information you need to start a Food Not Bombs group in your community: information on recovering food, setting up kitchens, cooking vegan and vegetarian meals for large groups, efficient consensus decision making, organizing nonviolent protests, producing banners, flyers and many other powerful ways to inspire the public to create a world where everyone has the food, dignity and peace they desire.
182 pages, Paperback
First published March 21, 2011
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77 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 14, 2019
So, several members of a group I'm in have been considering (and have finally put into action) doing some sort of meal-share program with low income individuals in the city. We would have liked to just latch on to an existing group, but as we're all vegans and none of the groups was particularly vegan-friendly it just wasn't working. (And note: I have nothing against the awesome people out there doing non-vegan food outreach to the homeless and working poor, busting their asses to share meals with people who have nothing; it's just that I'd prefer to do something consistent with my own beliefs.)
So I busted out "Hungry For Peace," which had been sitting unread on a bookshelf in my home for who knows how long, and read through it to get ideas. To be totally honest, there were parts I skipped or skimmed. Not a lot of interest right now in learning the details of how to set up a puppet show as a part of the meal service. But if I ever need that info, I now know where to find it.
This is a nice how-to guide. It gives the history and philosophy of the Food Not Bombs movement and then gives practical tips on how to collect food, how to distribute it, what to do if cops try to shut your food distro down, how to get the word out, how to keep food safe, and so on and on and on and on.
There's a lot in here and overall this is a good book. I can't touch on everything worth touching, but I'll share a few things that really resonated with me:
1. FNB is about "solidarity" rather than "charity." I like that very much. That's long been a thing with me. While I'm willing to share, I don't love the notion of "charity" because it feels like it's a top to bottom thing, that the giver is better than the receiver, that it's something we do out of some personal awesomeness. Solidarity implies equality. Fair treatment. Recognition that we may only have been lucky to be on this side of the give-receive relationship, not "better" or "smarter" or in any way more deserving. Solidarity is about connection, not pity.
2. I've been thinking a lot about food ethics lately. I've been vegan for a long, long time (haven't had meat in about 25 years, no dairy or eggs in about 16 years). But lately that hasn't seemed enough. Vegan doesn't automatically equal "ethical." There are all kinds of vegan foods out there that exploit workers, devastate the environment, create hell for wild animals, depend on unjust systems for processing and distribution. Vegan is a start, but only a start. Here, the author talks about food waste and the connection to food justice, noting that when Americans buy far more than they need (and then throw 40% of it away!) it jacks up the price of food in poorer nations, prices people out, leaves them hungry. If a grower can sell all their corn to us, he doesn't care if we eat it or overeat it or throw it in the garbage; he can get top dollar from Americans while others get none. This leads me to look at my wastefulness-- and my tendency to overeat, even on healthy food-- as an ethical issue, not just a financial issue or personal flaw. That will drive me to be much more mindful of what I buy, how I use it.
3. Several times in the book the author notes that one doesn't really need a permit or any kind of government permission to give away free food. He also notes that this is challenged almost nowhere except in the United States. I don't know if that surprises me or not. I know that it disappoints me. It's bizarre that no one is trying to shut down free food distro to the poor in Thailand or Russia or Poland or Kenya or New Zealand or Romania or Mexico or Nigeria, but that people are frequently arrested and food is frequently confiscated and dumped in the United States. Only here in our land of the free are people thrown in a jail cell for giving vegan food to hungry people for free. That, friends, is absolutely fucking insane.
4. I love the idea of the group operating using as little actual money as possible, collecting food that is about to be thrown out, emphasizing the incredible excess and wastefulness of the current system by feeding thousands delicious meals on what others might consider garbage.
So, as of today a new program is starting in my hometown. Not specifically Food Not Bombs, but inspired by it. It's exciting, and I appreciate this book for filling my heads with all kinds of ideas. Even more, I appreciate the other people who took the leap today and set up shop with stew and bread on a day (it figures) that I couldn't make it. Here's to next week, and the week after, and the week after.
So I busted out "Hungry For Peace," which had been sitting unread on a bookshelf in my home for who knows how long, and read through it to get ideas. To be totally honest, there were parts I skipped or skimmed. Not a lot of interest right now in learning the details of how to set up a puppet show as a part of the meal service. But if I ever need that info, I now know where to find it.
This is a nice how-to guide. It gives the history and philosophy of the Food Not Bombs movement and then gives practical tips on how to collect food, how to distribute it, what to do if cops try to shut your food distro down, how to get the word out, how to keep food safe, and so on and on and on and on.
There's a lot in here and overall this is a good book. I can't touch on everything worth touching, but I'll share a few things that really resonated with me:
1. FNB is about "solidarity" rather than "charity." I like that very much. That's long been a thing with me. While I'm willing to share, I don't love the notion of "charity" because it feels like it's a top to bottom thing, that the giver is better than the receiver, that it's something we do out of some personal awesomeness. Solidarity implies equality. Fair treatment. Recognition that we may only have been lucky to be on this side of the give-receive relationship, not "better" or "smarter" or in any way more deserving. Solidarity is about connection, not pity.
2. I've been thinking a lot about food ethics lately. I've been vegan for a long, long time (haven't had meat in about 25 years, no dairy or eggs in about 16 years). But lately that hasn't seemed enough. Vegan doesn't automatically equal "ethical." There are all kinds of vegan foods out there that exploit workers, devastate the environment, create hell for wild animals, depend on unjust systems for processing and distribution. Vegan is a start, but only a start. Here, the author talks about food waste and the connection to food justice, noting that when Americans buy far more than they need (and then throw 40% of it away!) it jacks up the price of food in poorer nations, prices people out, leaves them hungry. If a grower can sell all their corn to us, he doesn't care if we eat it or overeat it or throw it in the garbage; he can get top dollar from Americans while others get none. This leads me to look at my wastefulness-- and my tendency to overeat, even on healthy food-- as an ethical issue, not just a financial issue or personal flaw. That will drive me to be much more mindful of what I buy, how I use it.
3. Several times in the book the author notes that one doesn't really need a permit or any kind of government permission to give away free food. He also notes that this is challenged almost nowhere except in the United States. I don't know if that surprises me or not. I know that it disappoints me. It's bizarre that no one is trying to shut down free food distro to the poor in Thailand or Russia or Poland or Kenya or New Zealand or Romania or Mexico or Nigeria, but that people are frequently arrested and food is frequently confiscated and dumped in the United States. Only here in our land of the free are people thrown in a jail cell for giving vegan food to hungry people for free. That, friends, is absolutely fucking insane.
4. I love the idea of the group operating using as little actual money as possible, collecting food that is about to be thrown out, emphasizing the incredible excess and wastefulness of the current system by feeding thousands delicious meals on what others might consider garbage.
So, as of today a new program is starting in my hometown. Not specifically Food Not Bombs, but inspired by it. It's exciting, and I appreciate this book for filling my heads with all kinds of ideas. Even more, I appreciate the other people who took the leap today and set up shop with stew and bread on a day (it figures) that I couldn't make it. Here's to next week, and the week after, and the week after.
November 14, 2023
"It will be a great day when our schools get all the money they need, and the Air Force have to hold a bake sale to buy a bomber."
A must-read for people fed up with society's scarcity mindset and want to make a difference. I highly recommend anyone even remotely interested read this and or get involved with your local Food not Bombs chapter.
A must-read for people fed up with society's scarcity mindset and want to make a difference. I highly recommend anyone even remotely interested read this and or get involved with your local Food not Bombs chapter.
June 19, 2019
4.5.
January 2, 2026
An expansive book detailing Food Not Bombs’ history, organizing, and how to do it within your own group. It’s part-history, part-cookbook, part-DIY community building. Excellent and easy to read.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews