The American Civil Liberties Union and a Philadelphia law firm filed a federal lawsuit Monday on behalf of several religious groups seeking to block new city rules that prohibit groups from feeding large numbers of homeless people in city parks. The groups say the regulations infringe on their freedom of religion and free-speech rights under the First Amendment.
Paul Messing of the law firm Kairys, Rudovsky, Messing & Feinberg said the plaintiffs have been feeding the homeless on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway and other locations for more than a decade as part of their religious missions. He said Pennsylvania law protects their actions.
