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Former GM Autoworker on Hunger Strike for Over 70 Days with Lips Sewn Shut

Amien Essif February 1, 2013

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Last week, Take Action News named Jorge Parra “activist of the week” for his work with the organization ASOTRECOL, the Association of Injured Workers and Ex-workers of GM Colombia. The organization was formed over a year ago to represent General Motors workers fired from a Columbian plant after suffering job-related injuries. GM has been reluctant to negotiate with the group, but Parra and his fellow activists are hard to ignore: Many have sewn their lips shut as part of a hunger strike that, for Parra, has lasted over two months.

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Amien Essif is a regular contributor to Working In These Times and maintains a blog called The Gazine, which focuses on consumerism, gentrification, and technology with a Luddite bent. His work has also appeared on the Guardian and CounterPunch. You can find him using Twitter reluctantly: @AmienChicago