Today, on International Women's Day, we want to talk about the topic of „period poverty“
. We're aware that it's not only women who menstruate. But the people
affected are mostly people who identify as women. That's why in this post we'll talk about women, but we mean people of any gender who menstruate.
. We're aware that it's not only women who menstruate. But the people
affected are mostly people who identify as women. That's why in this post we'll talk about women, but we mean people of any gender who menstruate.
According to the Kinderschutzbund of the Berlin regional association, the
word „period poverty“ describes something unjust. What the term means is that some people don't have enough money available to supply themselves with menstrual products.
Menstrual products are e.g. pads, tampons or menstrual cups. For
people who receive Hartz IV, for instance, or earn little money, menstruation can
become a financial burden. Here's an example: People living on Hartz IV have 16.11€ per month available for hygiene items. Out of that they then have to buy things like shampoo, deodorant, shower gel, toothpaste, toothbrushes and toilet paper. Menstruating people additionally have to buy their menstrual products out of those same 16.11€. On top of that, menstruating people sometimes also need painkillers during their period. The reason is that for some people menstruation causes stomach pain.
So menstruating costs money. What's unfair about it is that not everyone can afford it.
For about a month now, menstrual products have been laid out in our office in Hamburg in all the toilets. With this we want to help people who use the toilets and menstruate in a bloody emergency, and at the same time break the taboo that the period sadly still is.
One initiative that works against period poverty is Social Periode e.V.
They say the following: In public discourse, monthly bleeding is still a big taboo topic. But talking openly about monthly bleeding is essential if you want to make sure that every woman gets access to menstrual products. Homeless women in particular have a much harder time taking care of their monthly hygiene. The Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Wohnungslosenhilfe states that around 100,000 women in Germany are homeless. According to estimates by Caritas, in Berlin alone around 2500 women are currently living on the street under precarious conditions. And the trend is rising. Many of these women are of childbearing age and have no, or only very limited, access to menstrual products. This is mainly because, when it comes to providing hygiene items, social institutions largely depend on donations. Pads and panty liners in particular are urgently needed.
We don't want to put up with these conditions any longer, and so with your help we'd like to change something. If you happen to live in Berlin, there's the option of getting involved with Social Period. If not, you could donate menstrual products that you have left over, for example because you've switched to a menstrual cup, to women's shelters or housing for refugees.
Other than that, it always helps to bring up the topic of menstruation in your private circles or at work. Only if you feel comfortable with it, of course. Many women still feel unsure about talking about their complaints and fears during their period, especially at work. But without more being said about it, grievances and inequalities can't be tackled either.
That's why today, on International Women's Day, we wish for a more open way of dealing with monthly bleeding and for free menstrual products in all public toilets, to actively fight period poverty.
Sources:
https://kinderschutzbund-berlin.de/periodenarmut-was-ist-das/
https://www.socialperiod.org/#main
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