Student's Speak: Hunger Strike is On

Hunger Strike to Support AFSCME Workers’ Struggle for Justice: "Office Hours" and Public Teach-In on Tuesday

Hunger strikers’ “office hours”- 9:30-6pm on Tuesday, September 18, 2007.

Public teach-in - 1:00-1:45pm on Tuesday, September 18, 2007.

Location: east end of the Washington Avenue pedestrian bridge, in front of the Weisman Art Center.

Today at a noon press conference in front of Morrill Hall at the University of Minnesota, eleven University of Minnesota students declared that they are hunger striking to support the clerical, technical, and healthcare AFSCME workers who have been striking for a fair contract for thirteen days. A faculty member and a staff member are also joining the hunger strike to show their solidarity with the students and the workers. Professor Richa Nagar, who is hunger striking, said, “A hunger strike is not about sacrificing oneself; it is essentially about bringing attention to an injustice by shaming those who propagate it. The idea is that anyone who is human has the capacity to feel ashamed, and a hunger strike is a call to that person to show his or her humanity by correcting the wrong.”

Lauren Siegel, an undergraduate, read part of the group’s collective statement: “Our hunger strike is intended to draw attention to the workers’ struggle. Currently the administration has failed to offer a contract that keeps up with inflation, despite the fact that the legislature explicitly allocated money for that purpose.” She continued, “To have justice in our community would mean that nobody would go hungry. However, according to a recent survey, 25% of AFSCME workers have trouble feeding their families. We are making a conscientious choice to hunger strike, just as the Bruininks administration has made a choice to deny the workers a fair contract. They could choose otherwise. They could choose to give themselves lower salaries and give that money to the workers.”

Humphrey Institute graduate student and hunger striker, Dani Indovino, talked about why the students care about the workers’ struggle. “We are not speaking for the workers. Our hunger strike is a student-initiated and student-led action.” She elaborated, “we are outraged that Bruininks and his administration have let the ideal of quality education take second-stage to efficiency and profitability. For this university to create the best learning environment for us students, the whole university community must be treated with respect and fairness.”

Another hunger striker, a political science graduate student, Susan Kang, explained why they have chosen the tactic of a hunger strike. “We have tried every possible way of communicating our demand that President Bruininks and his administration offer a contract which keeps up with the cost of living. Yet, they refuse to listen to us. In opposition to the administration’s monopoly over on-campus media, we hope that our protest will serve as a platform for engaging in dialogue with students about the union’s position.”

The hunger strikers welcome their fellow students, community members, and the press to come and talk with them about the strike and their vision for a future of the university in which all workers are treated fairly. They will hold “office hours” between 9:30am and 6pm everyday, in front of Morrill Hall. All are invited to attend a public teach-in, tomorrow, Tuesday, September 18th, 1:00-1:45pm. Professor Ajay Skaria will speak about Gandhi’s hunger strikes, and Professor Ron Greene will talk about “Collective Bargaining for a Collective Citizen.”

Also, supporters are signing up for a “24-hour solidarity fast,” to begin at 1pm on Wednesday, September 19th. Solidarity fasters will wear green armbands that say “fast” to signify their participation. The fast will begin after a mass protest by faculty and students called “struck speechless”: thirty minutes of silence followed by one minute of noise, from 12:15 to 12:46pm, Wednesday, to protest both the Administration’s unfair offer to the workers and their dismissing of the faculty’s dissent as “noise.”

PHOTO OPPORTUNITY: Students are undertaking a student-led hunger strike for justice in solidarity with the AFSCME workers. They are available for interviews on the patio in front of Morrill Hall, from 9:30am to 6pm, everyday. When it rains, they will move to the cover of the east end of the Washington Avenue pedestrian bridge, in front of the Weisman Art Center. Press personnel are also invited to visit the “office hours” or the Church after hours for interviews and photo opportunities. A phone call to our contact person prior to a visit is much appreciated.