More On: British food bank
After criticism, a British food bank will stay open during the Queen's funeral
A British food bank that had planned to close on Monday for Queen Elizabeth II's funeral has changed its mind and will stay open.
The change of heart by the Wimbledon FoodBank happened just a few hours apart on Tuesday, and it was met with anger on social media.
"During this sad time, our thoughts are with the Royal family. On Monday, September 19, all food bank hubs will be closed because of a funeral. We'll be back open on Tuesday, September 20th," the food pantry wrote on Facebook.
The reaction was quick.
A UK housing activist named Kwajo Tweneboa tweeted, "Just because the Queen is being buried doesn't mean that people who are poorer should be expected to starve."
"This is a terrible choice! One Brit said on Facebook that it's like you're saying, "The Queen is dead, so starve, you poor people."
"It's very sad and upsetting that people will give their hard-earned money to pay for the funeral of a very rich woman they don't know, instead of giving it to an essential service that feeds people who can't afford it," wrote another.
A few hours later, the Wimbledon FoodBank took back what they had said.
The food bank tweeted, "Thanks to the huge amount of help we've gotten, we now have enough volunteers to run our Monday session as usual." "As a reminder, we are not a government service, and we only get money, food, and time from people who want to help."
Even though the Wimbledon FoodBank got the most backlash, it wasn't the only soup kitchen that closed for the funeral. The East Elmbridge Food Bank, the food bank branch in Stoke-on-Trent, and the food bank branch in Keynsham all said they would be closed on the bank holiday.
Parliament says that the UK has been in a cost-of-living crisis since early 2021. On September 2, the House of Commons Library said that the country's inflation rate in July was the highest it has been in 40 years.
Many English people on social media have asked mourners not to buy flowers for Buckingham Palace's seemingly endless field of bouquets but instead to give to food banks.
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