Unicorn Riot: Philly Activists' Hunger Strike Pushes Community Demands for Budget Surplus
Unicorn Riot · June 5, 2026 · By Andrew Lee
Unicorn Riot covers the Make Philly Affordable hunger strike outside City Hall, where organizers demanded Mayor Cherelle Parker spend a record $1.1 billion surplus on food access, affordable housing, schools, rec centers, libraries, transit and clean energy. On day eight, Reclaim Philadelphia's Seth Anderson-Oberman joined Sunrise Movement Philly's Erica Brown and Swarthmore's Brit Christopher in refusing food until the administration met community demands. "Mayor Parker has a $1.1 billion budget surplus, a historically large amount, and she can use that right now," Brown said. The report also documents the response: hunger strikers dragged out of a public town hall, then handcuffed and removed from a sit-in at the mayor's City Hall office.