Anti-sweatshop hunger strike

WEST LAFAYETTE, IND.--Students representing numerous Purdue organizations, including the Purdue Organization for Labor Equality, Amnesty International, the Purdue Alliance of Libertarian Socialists, and the Marxist-Humanist Network, are currently engaged in a hunger strike and camp-in until Purdue President Martin Jischke signs the Designated Suppliers Program (DSP). The DSP ensures that Purdue-logo-ed apparel is made in factories which follow three basic guidelines:

1. Workers in these factories have the right to form a democratic union if they desire, or already have such a representative body.
2. Workers in these factories can bargain toward a living wage.
3. The Purdue Code of Conduct (which has already been approved) is followed.

For seven years Purdue students have been struggling to make Purdue a sweat-free campus. Over the course of the past year and a half, we have attempted to reach an agreement with the university, but have not received a positive response nor any concrete answers as to the university's problems with the DSP.

Purdue's apparel monitoring organization, the Workers Rights Consortium, has already endorsed the DSP. Some 30 peer universities, including Indiana University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, have already adopted the DSP.

The hunger strike, which began Nov. 17, will continue until Purdue unequivocally accepts the DSP. Students have also been occupying various campus buildings 24 hours a day despite intense police harrassment. The occupation will continue throughout the Thanksgiving holiday.

To help us:

1. Contact the Purdue Board of Trustees (trustees@purdue.edu, Tel: 765 494 9710, Fax: 765 496 7465), President Martin Jischke (mcjischke@purdue.edu, 765 494 9708), and Vice President of University Relations Joe Bennett (jlbennett@purdue.edu, 765 494 2085).
2. Send letters of support to the strikers c/o purdue_ole@yahoo.com and egcollective@riseup.net.

--Supporters