Hunger Strike
The past couple of days, I've noticed a person who has been standing out at Parliment House in the city, participating in a hunger strike. I haven't actually seen the person who was doing the hunger strike, because they had a blanket completely covering who they were. I'm imagining it's a woman, for the purpose of the hunger strike. So in this blog, I will be referring my subject as female.
She had a paper sign with texter saying "I'm on a Hunger Strike for the Australian People" and it stated how many hours she'd been doing this. Then next to her, a sign stated "DHS are abusing my children" and then mentioned something else. I couldn't quite get a clear picture as to what the hunger strike was all about. But it was my impression that this woman believed that DHS had taken her children away from her, and now she was trying to get back at DHS. I highly doubt that DHS would be abusing her children, but then again, some of the foster care homes around, are pretty dodgy.
I walked by Parliment House this morning, and there was no one here. So either she "caved" in, or someone forced her to leave the premises. I wondered if she actually stayed there all day and night. As the nights have been pretty darn cold, I don't think she would have survived staying outside, without food, and then trying to survive in the freezing weather.
But this hunger strike, as well as the one Saddam Hussein is doing, along with the 7 others on trial...it got me thinking a lot. What good does a hunger strike really do? What sort of point is it bringing across to other people? I know these two people are not the only cases which this happens. You hear stories in the news about people in jail or detention centres, who are going on hunger strikes. I mean, isn't it their conscious choice to NOT eat. If people don't want to eat, why force them? People can provide food to people, but it's someone's own conscious decision to NOT eat. If they want to prove themselves, or not eat in order to prove a point, well, what point is it really proving?
Personally for me, I couldn't go on a hunger strike. I've tried to fast, and it just doesn't work well with me. I'm the sort of person that has to eat like 5 times a day. I don't eat a lot, but I eat constantly. I guess some people just have stronger convictions than I do.
After seeing the woman gone from Parliment House stairs, I got to thinking "what exactly would have to happen, in order for me to participate in a hunger strike. I couldn't think of anything. Sure I have strong beliefs and convictions, but I guess when it comes to food, there's no bargaining there. And maybe I don't have the power or the passion to take a conviction or opinion as far as going on a hunger strike.
She had a paper sign with texter saying "I'm on a Hunger Strike for the Australian People" and it stated how many hours she'd been doing this. Then next to her, a sign stated "DHS are abusing my children" and then mentioned something else. I couldn't quite get a clear picture as to what the hunger strike was all about. But it was my impression that this woman believed that DHS had taken her children away from her, and now she was trying to get back at DHS. I highly doubt that DHS would be abusing her children, but then again, some of the foster care homes around, are pretty dodgy.
I walked by Parliment House this morning, and there was no one here. So either she "caved" in, or someone forced her to leave the premises. I wondered if she actually stayed there all day and night. As the nights have been pretty darn cold, I don't think she would have survived staying outside, without food, and then trying to survive in the freezing weather.
But this hunger strike, as well as the one Saddam Hussein is doing, along with the 7 others on trial...it got me thinking a lot. What good does a hunger strike really do? What sort of point is it bringing across to other people? I know these two people are not the only cases which this happens. You hear stories in the news about people in jail or detention centres, who are going on hunger strikes. I mean, isn't it their conscious choice to NOT eat. If people don't want to eat, why force them? People can provide food to people, but it's someone's own conscious decision to NOT eat. If they want to prove themselves, or not eat in order to prove a point, well, what point is it really proving?
Personally for me, I couldn't go on a hunger strike. I've tried to fast, and it just doesn't work well with me. I'm the sort of person that has to eat like 5 times a day. I don't eat a lot, but I eat constantly. I guess some people just have stronger convictions than I do.
After seeing the woman gone from Parliment House stairs, I got to thinking "what exactly would have to happen, in order for me to participate in a hunger strike. I couldn't think of anything. Sure I have strong beliefs and convictions, but I guess when it comes to food, there's no bargaining there. And maybe I don't have the power or the passion to take a conviction or opinion as far as going on a hunger strike.
posted by Gaylicious© at Friday, June 23, 2006
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