Philadelphia community advocate Sheila Armstrong delivered a pointed public rebuke of the Philadelphia City Council, accusing its left-leaning leadership of hypocrisy and misplaced priorities during a recent public meeting.

Armstrong, who founded the nonprofit initiative “Cooking for Autism,” told council members that she does not consider herself a political activist and had not planned to engage in city politics. She said her remarks were motivated by a moral obligation rather than partisan alignment.

“My name is Sheila Armstrong. Some of y'all know me, some of y'all don't. I have to be honest that I'm not happy to be here today because of what God had put on my heart to say today,” Armstrong said. “I really tried to stay in my lane. I created cooking for autism so I could do my advocacy work in peace and mind my own business and just help the people that I like to help, because I don't do politics. I don't like politics, and y'all know this.”

Armstrong said her remarks were guided by scripture, citing passages from the Gospel of Matthew as a warning to elected officials.

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She accused the council of presenting itself as morally upright while advancing policies she said harm families, parents, and working residents.

“God put on my heart a warning that is coming from the book of Matthew six, five and Matthew 2315,” Armstrong said.

“The message is, Woe to you, elected officials of the law. You are hypocrites.”

In her remarks, Armstrong listed several policies and actions she attributed to the council, including school closures, support for Philadelphia’s plastic bag ban, and changes to legislation she said were made to benefit elected officials personally.

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“Woe to you that organized on the backs of parents and students of the affiliate school district. But yet more schools are closing,” she said.

“Woe to you that supported the plastic bag ban, but manufacturers are using plastic for everything, that hardship of people paying for bags to take their grocery home.”

She also criticized what she described as selective application of ethics rules, particularly regarding political candidacy laws.

“Woe to you that's the supported the resign and run legislation, but now trying to change it because it now affects you,” Armstrong said.

Armstrong further accused council members of intolerance toward dissent and of prioritizing ideological loyalty over representation of constituents.

“Woe to you that shout one Philly but villainize those that disagree with you,” she said.

“Woe to you that claims to be representations of God but support legislation that is against him.”

Her comments also addressed what she described as contradictions between council members’ rhetoric on women’s rights and their treatment of female critics.

“Woe to you that says you support women and talk bad about any woman that stands against you, or whatever your policies or anything that you're doing,” Armstrong said.

Armstrong concluded by accusing the council of favoring special interest groups and prioritizing illegal immigrants over American citizens living in Philadelphia.

“Woe to you that work for special interest groups that donated to your campaign but leave the rest of us, people out here desperately searching for hope from somewhere,” she said. “Woe to you that continually be saying the ice out because in these streets is being interpreted as illegal immigrants is in and that this council cares more about illegal immigrant than American citizens in this city.”

She closed her remarks by repeating her condemnation.

“Woe to you, elected officials, hypocrites. Woe to you.”

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