What is period poverty?
Period poverty is when someone does not have access to sanitary products or has a lack of education on menstruation, which is often caused by financial constraints. It is not just limited to sanitary products, but also washing facilities and waste management.
The statistics
Around the world, up to 500 million women and girls are living each month in period poverty. In Australia, that figure is over 1 million.
Rochelle Courtenay, founder of not-for-profit organisation Share the Dignity, told Yahoo Finance the issue is greater than one would ever imagine: “There are drought-stricken farming communities. There are remote Indigenous communities. There are remote communities where culturally women don’t feel like they can buy the products.”
Worldwide, it is estimated that one in 10 young women have been unable to afford sanitary products for their period.
Around the world, twelve percent of women have been forced to use other devices instead of sanitary products which can be ineffective, unhygienic and unsafe.
How does period poverty hold people back?
Not only does period poverty affect the livelihood of individuals all across the world, but it also impacts education. Due to their periods, girls often miss significant amounts of school each month – as time continues, some find that they have fallen too far behind and simply stop going altogether. Others tire of the shame, embarrassment and stigma. Managing periods during school hours can be difficult, even with access to sanitary products. Globally, 2 billion people lack access to basic sanitation facilities, such as toilets or latrines – this includes in schools. Without a way to safely manage their periods, many girls miss school, and with it, the opportunity to learn.
Why the stigma behind periods is harmful?
The stigma around menstruation is further exemplified by the many euphemisms that exist for the term: “time of the month,” “period,” “female troubles,” “Aunt Flo,” “on the rag,” and many more. And that’s just in English. A study conducted by the International Women’s Health Coalition found that there are about 5,000 slang words used to refer to menstruation in 10 different languages. Though using euphemisms may seem innocuous, it is indicative of a larger trend in attitudes regarding menstrual health around the globe. Because of the taboos surrounding menstruation in many parts of the world, there is a significant lack of health education resources available to people about the menstrual cycle. It is this lack of knowledge that fuels myths which ostracize and humiliate women during their monthly cycles. It was found that in a survey of 1,000 people, nearly half were embarrassed by their period. The stigma behind periods can also lead to a severe lack of education surrounding periods; inIndia, 70% of women don’t know where sanitary towels are or how to use them.
Period Poverty during COVID-19
Since 2020, many countries have introduced national lockdowns, period poverty is becoming an issue for more people. Due to financial strains, reduced access to products, and increases in prices, more people are suffering. School closures also lead to individuals not having access to sanitary products that they may have had access to at school. Although period poverty has been an issue globally for a long time, now people need more support in accessing a necessity.
✰how you can help✰
breaking the stigma
Say the word period. Using euphemisms for a natural occurrence in many people’s lives reinforced the stigma behind periods. In normalising discussions about periods, we can help to eliminate the stigma, leading to individuals being more open to education surrounding periods. After all, menstruation is normal. Period.
use your voice
The CCYP (Commissioner for Children and Young People) initiates a petition on a particular topic or issues including period poverty. The petition is then presented to relevant decision makers and community leaders to encourage them to consider taking the actions proposed. Individuals ages 13 years and over are invited to sign the petition.
donate
Women’s charity, Share the Dignity, believes every woman has the right to her own dignity and should have access to pads and tampons regardless of her situation. Each year they host two sanitary item drives and an annual ‘It’s In The Bag’ campaign to collect much needed necessities for women across the country doing it tough. They rely heavily on the selfless work of volunteers to coordinate these donations to charities all over Australia. They also supply vending machines filled with free pads and tampons to low socioeconomic areas for those in need.
– lacey :))
Bibliography
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