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Half a year has passed since the city of Roswell blocked a local Food Not Bombs chapter from distributing free food at the city-owned Pioneer Plaza downtown.

Now, the group is taking the city to court.

The group and its local organizer, Jocelyn Smith, argue in a lawsuit that the city is unlawfully prohibiting free expression and peaceful assembly on public property by enforcing requiring the group to apply for permits to gather and to obtain a concession agreement to distribute food.

鈥淭he city does not comment on pending litigation,鈥� Todd Wildermuth, the city鈥檚 public information officer, said.

Food Not Bombs is an international organization with independent local chapters that advocate for nonviolence and justice, oppose war and serve free vegetarian meals at its demonstrations.

The Roswell group began its demonstrations at Pioneer Plaza in 2024, but the city began pushing back last summer, according to the civil complaint, by demanding permits and liability insurance.

After the group continued holding its weekly open-air picnics without a permit, city attorney Josh Nairn-Mahan sent Smith a notice in November that the city would be using the park exclusively for an indefinite period, the lawsuit states.

After that, Nairn-Mahan referred the group to a city ordinance requiring a special events permit, requested 120 days in advance, for each gathering.

The lawsuit alleges the city engaged in viewpoint discrimination and used pretextual excuses for excluding Food Not Bombs.

The complaint presents evidence that, despite the city attorney鈥檚 notification, the city appeared only to use the plaza for holiday decorations during the winter and allowed other organizations to gather and even distribute food at the plaza without requiring permits.

Meanwhile, the group said it has lost public visibility, been deprived of civil rights and forced to turn down donations of food.

The lawsuit was filed in New Mexico鈥檚 5th Judicial District with the support of the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty and the American Civil Liberties Union.

Smith and Food Not Bombs are asking the court to declare the ordinance unconstitutional, block enforcement and award compensatory damages.

鈥淲e believe no one in our community should go hungry when we have the resources to feed everyone,鈥� Smith said in a written statement.

鈥淎ll we want is to get back out to Pioneer Plaza and keep eating and talking with our neighbors about how we can build a world where there is no more hunger, no more poverty and much more peace.鈥�

This story originally misstated Todd Wildermuth鈥檚 job title, and has been corrected.

Algernon 顿鈥橝尘尘补蝉蝉补 is the Journal鈥檚 southern New Mexico correspondent. He can be reached at adammassa@abqjournal.com.