Today I want to focus on period poverty (the inability to access menstrual hygiene products) and how it affects people’s educations, as well as talk about negative social norms surrounding menstruation.
The average menstrual cycle is 28 days and the average length of a period is 5 days, hence the reason why Menstrual Hygiene Day is 5/28!
via menstrualhygieneday.org:
Menstrual Hygiene Day (MH Day) is a global advocacy platform that brings together the voices and actions of non-profits, government agencies, individuals, the private sector and the media to promote good menstrual hygiene management (MHM) for all women and girls.*
More specifically, MH Day:
via menstrualhygieneday.org:
Menstrual Hygiene Day (MH Day) is a global advocacy platform that brings together the voices and actions of non-profits, government agencies, individuals, the private sector and the media to promote good menstrual hygiene management (MHM) for all women and girls.*
More specifically, MH Day:
- breaks the silence, raises awareness and changes negative social norms around MHM, and
- engages decision-makers to increase the political priority and catalyse action for MHM, at global, national and local levels.
*MH Day specifically focuses its efforts on the majority of menstruators, which happen to be women and girls. MH Day states, "In many countries, we are just now making the first baby steps towards normalising the menstruation of women and girls. In our view, we haven’t made nearly enough progress for MH Day as a global initiative to take on the potentially even bigger taboo of other people who menstruate." |
*a few* examples of the realities of living in period poverty, specifically zeroing in on education & hygiene:
- 1 in 5 teens have struggled to afford menstrual products or were unable to purchase them at all (data collected by Harris Insights & Analytics in a survey of 1,000 US teens ages 13-19)
- 1 in 4 US teens have missed class due to a lack of access to menstrual products (from above survey)
- Many menstruators around the world must resort to using cotton wool, socks, cardboard, book pages, or leaves to catch their menstrual flow
- According to the Guardian, on average, Kenyan girls miss 4.9 days of school per month due to periods. Some must drop out of school entirely and miss out on their education.
- The United Nations Agency found that about 10% of adolescent girls in western Kenya are forced to engage in transactional sex in order to obtain the proper sanitary pads
Menstruators often have to drop out of school entirely from missing too many days. Period poverty is a GLOBAL issue, one that affects the US, as well as nations we consider “developing.” It is one of the leading reasons people miss school.
What can we do?
Before anything else, we must recognize the main culprits of period poverty: STIGMA. TABOO. IGNORANCE.
Too many people suffer during their menstrual periods in silence because society has come to associate menstruation with being “gross,” “embarrassing,” “dirty,” “shameful,” etc. Without these harmful and misinformed stigmas, we can address menstrual health and hygiene without fear or shame.
EDUCATE yourself.
Whether you menstruate or not, period poverty and menstrual education are things you should care about.
SPEAK OUT against taboo, stigma, and misinformation on social media and in person.
Call for the repeal of the tampon tax.
Ask your school, university, or workplace to provide free products in every restroom.
DONATE money or period supplies to organizations you find along the way.
Start LOCAL. Donate to and volunteer at homeless shelters, schools, places of worship, etc.
SIGN petitions.
ATTEND rallies demanding an end to stigma and period poverty.
Start at HOME.
DISCUSS menstruation, menstrual hygiene, and overall menstrual health with everyone you know.
***Please understand that menstrual hygiene is not just a menstruator’s issue. Everyone has a responsibility to destroy stigma & help those in need. The chances are high that someone YOU know is dealing with menstrual issues, even period poverty.
What can we do?
Before anything else, we must recognize the main culprits of period poverty: STIGMA. TABOO. IGNORANCE.
Too many people suffer during their menstrual periods in silence because society has come to associate menstruation with being “gross,” “embarrassing,” “dirty,” “shameful,” etc. Without these harmful and misinformed stigmas, we can address menstrual health and hygiene without fear or shame.
EDUCATE yourself.
Whether you menstruate or not, period poverty and menstrual education are things you should care about.
SPEAK OUT against taboo, stigma, and misinformation on social media and in person.
Call for the repeal of the tampon tax.
Ask your school, university, or workplace to provide free products in every restroom.
DONATE money or period supplies to organizations you find along the way.
Start LOCAL. Donate to and volunteer at homeless shelters, schools, places of worship, etc.
SIGN petitions.
ATTEND rallies demanding an end to stigma and period poverty.
Start at HOME.
DISCUSS menstruation, menstrual hygiene, and overall menstrual health with everyone you know.
***Please understand that menstrual hygiene is not just a menstruator’s issue. Everyone has a responsibility to destroy stigma & help those in need. The chances are high that someone YOU know is dealing with menstrual issues, even period poverty.
No one should have to miss out on their valuable education just because they don’t have access to menstrual hygiene.
No one should feel ashamed of or be limited by something as normal and natural as a period.
Our mothers’ blood kept us alive in the womb. It’s empowering!
No one should feel ashamed of or be limited by something as normal and natural as a period.
Our mothers’ blood kept us alive in the womb. It’s empowering!
Where to learn more info or get involved:
These organizations are working diligently to ensure menstruators around the world have access to period products. They need our support, especially now, because periods don’t pause for pandemics!