Holger Meins
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Holger Meins (born October 26, 1941 in Hamburg - November 9, 1974) was a German Cinematography student who joined the Red Army Faction (RAF) in the early 1970s and died on hunger strike in prison.
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[edit] As a Revolutionary
Meins became an important member of the RAF and was seen somewhat as a leading figure. He was very involved in the gang workings and even had a grenade casing and bomb mould designed which could be placed under a woman's dress, giving the impression that she was pregnant, thereby facilitating the planting of bombs.
On 1 June 1972, Meins and Andreas Baader along with Jan Carl Raspe went to check on a storage garage in Frankfurt where they kept materials for making bombs. However the police had got a tip-off and were waiting for them. Meins and Baader entered the garage and were immediately surrounded. The police blocked the exit of the garage and fired tear gas grenades into the garage via a back window, however Baader simply threw the tear gas back out. The stand off didn't last long as Baader was shot in the leg and Meins surrendered soon after. Both men were arrested, as was Raspe.
Meins was soon imprisoned but he didn't stop rebelling. In prison the RAF-convicts launched several hunger strikes against the prison authorities. Meins died by self-induced starvation on hunger strike November 9, 1974. Over six feet tall, Meins weighed less than 100 pounds (45 kg) at the time of his death. It was believed no outside doctors were allowed in to check on Meins during the hunger strike, even though the prison doctors had recommended that he should have been transported to Intensive Care.
[edit] Aftermath
Meins' death sparked many protest marches across Europe, with many turning violent. It caused further hatred from the RAF's members. Jean-Paul Sartre's chauffeur for his meeting with Andreas Baader and later a terrorist also, Hans-Joachim Klein claimed to keep a picture of Holger Meins’ autopsy photo on him to reinforce his hatred for the West German “fascist” system
The RAF members who executed the West German embassy siege in Stockholm in 1975 named their commando in his honour.
