Highlights ■ Institutional food practices mediate dignity and recognition. ■ Power relations shape autonomy in food assistance services. ■ Food provision can reinforce power asymmetries in institutional relations. ■ Dignity is ontological and cannot be negotiated. ABSTRACT This essay draws on a qualitative study that explored the understandings of employees responsible for planning, preparing, and distributing meals in three food assistance services in downtown São Paulo (Brazil) regarding food provision for people experiencing homelessness. In that study, 12 semi-structured interviews […]
