LOS ANGELES, California — “Period poverty is a lack of access to menstrual products, education, hygiene facilities, waste management or a combination of these.” Globally, 500 million people struggle with period poverty daily. A Canadian province has made period poverty a central topic by establishing a new task force to help end period poverty in British Columbia.
The Effects of Period Poverty
According to Medical News Today, period poverty has detrimental effects on individuals by, for example, affecting their physical and mental well-being. It also has social and economic implications. If individuals cannot access menstrual products, this sometimes leaves them with no choice but to stay home from work or school. To put this into perspective, this implies that up to 500 million individuals willing and able to work or receive education cannot do so seven days a week, once a month.
Why is it Necessary to Fight Period Poverty in British Columbia?
In 2020, almost a quarter of women younger than 25 faced financial struggles securing enough or adequate menstrual products throughout Canada. This is because Canadian women, on average, have to spend up to $6,000 on feminine products throughout their lifetime. This cost doubles for individuals living in Canada’s rural areas. In British Columbia, one in four individuals lives in rural areas.
United Way is a global nonprofit aiming to further education, income and health in disadvantaged communities. In its report, it showed that 23% of Canadian respondents have struggled to afford menstrual products. In British Columbia, specifically, United Way found that 50% of individuals who menstruate have struggled to buy sufficient feminine products at some point in their lives. “More than a quarter have gone through a period without having menstrual products whatsoever and nearly 15% grew up in homes where they did not have access to menstrual products,” United Way reported in its research.
More than 80% of local organizations that give out free feminine products are dependent on donations and people ask more than 95% of organizations for free menstrual products.
Thus, efforts are desperately needed to help support those British Columbians who rely on organizations or desperate means to meet their period needs.
The Task Force
Not only has United Way helped start a dialogue about period poverty through research and advocacy, but recently it launched the campaign: Period Promise. The campaign ran until June 7, 2022. Its goal was to end period poverty through a task force made up of representatives of the community, such as business owners, indigenous people and individuals who have experienced period poverty.
Its main objective was to foster relationships with “governments, indigenous partners, businesses, communities, and nonprofit organizations” to understand and find long-lasting solutions to period poverty. More immediately, Period Promise wants to make products more accessible to those who menstruate by, for example, distributing menstrual products.
Government Support
Not for the first time, the Canadian labor movement supported United Way’s efforts. Several unions drew attention to the campaign by endorsing and promoting its efforts. Possibly, as a result, the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction has made it their goal to make British Columbia a stellar global example in ending period poverty. Resultingly, the ministry provided United Way British Columbia with a $750,000 provincial grant to support Period Promise’s initiatives, according to BC Gov News.
Promising Outlook
With the Canadian government supporting the campaign and United Way’s successful track record, period poverty in British Columbia might soon no longer be a day-to-day struggle for many.
In 2019, United Way’s ensured that all students have access to free menstrual products in the washroom of all public schools, BC Gov News reported. In 2021, the organization provided more than 510,000 feminine products to those who needed them, according to the Period Poverty website. It will be interesting to see what 2022 has in store.
– Lena Maassen
Photo: Flickr