I’ve never understood the point of a hunger strike. Do what i want or I’ll kill myself just doesn’t seem like a great negotiating tactic.
My thought is Its a strategic choice to enhance visibility/awareness. The people you’re protesting rarely care, but it creates a higher stakes scenario that makes people pay attention and makes it more likely for your cause to get engagement.
To some degree, it also serves to legitimize your commitment and make the opposition look weak—I’m willing to die for this cause, and they won’t budge or make sacrifices, etc.
When prisoners do it, in certain circumstances, it has more leverage, because the captor might not want them to die in their care, as this would make them a martyr or cause them uncomfortable political blowback or scrutiny.
I guess the hope is that it will be considered martyrdom and inspire the people to rise up?
I don’t know if that really works most of the time though.
I think the concept is that other people are innately empathetic. Doesn’t really work these days, not sure if it ever did.
rip
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I’m AwakeSoulist/Buddhist.
There are 2 sides to this that seem pertinent:
As a means of protest it is valid to do-so.
As a means of manipulating others into obeying one’s social-pressure … it absolutely is not.
I’m an independent “charnel-ground dweller” style buddhist, though, so no tradition holds that I’m valid, in any way, whatsoever.
You consider it, & you make up your own mind.
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