The Business about Periods

In Chris Bobel's Third-Wave Feminism and the Politics of Menstruation, Courtney Dailey, one of the Bloodsisters' founders, was quoted in speaking about the link between radical menstruation and human rights. According to Courtney Dailey, with radical menstruation comes "...a wider struggle for human rights, against capitalism, racism, classism, homophobia, heterosexism, sizeism, ableism, the list goes on..." (Bobel, 100). Dailey goes on to speak about the importance of understanding how our actions and the way we choose to live affects others as well as the importance of assessing our privilege. This section of the piece really resonated with me. Before reading this piece, I never thought about how much privilege I do have when it comes to feminine hygiene/menstruation, as well as how classism and capitalism play a role in feminine hygiene/menstruation. My position in this society allows any/all products related to feminine hygiene/menstruation to always be readily available to me.

However, in further researching menstruation and it's connection with classism and capitalism, I came across a topic that really doesn't seem to generate enough conversation - being a homeless woman having to cope with periods. Perhaps the most eye opening piece I came across was a video created by Bustle in October of 2016, which featured various homeless women around New York City being interviewed to talk about their struggle with going through menstruation while homeless as well as getting access to feminine hygiene products such as pads or tampons.

In the video, the women mention the cost of pads or tampons, particularly in New York City, and how the price of these products are so high that they often have to choose between having lunch or buying a box of tampons/pads. One woman stated that "...a big box of tampons usually runs around $10, so that could be half of what we make during the day...". Another stated that tampons are "...more money that me and my boyfriend spend on a meal together...I would rather be clean than be full...".

While the average cost per package of a pad is $5.84 and the average cost of a package of tampons is $7.62, I feel that ultimately this issue isn't about who can and cannot afford these products. Rather, the issue is why women have to even pay for these products in the first place and why they aren't readily available to all women? Why are these products marketed as if they are a luxury for us when in reality they have the ability to help us maintain a natural or biological function? While I do believe that not all women must choose to use these products that companies such as Always and Tampax provide (as Bobel proves to us in writing about radical menstruationists) ultimately it comes down to giving every woman the right/access/opportunity to be able to choose what method they are most comfortable using. 

It is important that we continue to use various media platforms to give the public insight on how problematic this issue is, and maybe then we can possibly move toward dismantling a system that sees our biological function as a means of profit.