Period Poverty (Part 2): An Inclusive, Just Menstrual Movement
Today’s post is building off what was introduced in Part 1 back in May. After discussing the issue of period poverty, I intended to interview local organizers at my school as well as teen leaders with PERIOD from around the country. According to their website, “PERIOD was founded in 2014 by two 16-year-old high school students with a passion for periods.” There are three pillars to the work of PERIOD chapters: service, education, and advocacy.
 |
| @periodrhs bagging menstrual hygiene products to hand out free of charge |
Between May 27 and today, however, the movement for menstrual equality has been through some changes and reckonings. There’s now a more important story to tell.
I spoke with Kacey, the president of PERIOD at McMinnville High School in Oregon, and Shyla, co-president of PERIOD at Redwood High School in California, back in May. Both of these chapters are now disassociating from PERIOD.
What happened? Recently, some disturbing news has come to light about PERIOD and Nadya Okamoto, who founded the organization. I highly encourage you to read about the whole thing at this link, to hear it from Ileri Jaiyeoba. Go ahead, I’ll wait.
Okay, so… there’s a lot to process in here. It shows why we have to hold our leaders accountable, even the young founders of a movement that really inspires people. Okamoto still has space to grow and change as an individual and a movement leader, yet to center this entire conversation on one person doesn’t help very much. This is a larger conversation about equity and intersectionality, because Okamoto isn’t the only one to engage in such exploitative behaviors and performative activism.
Regardless of the upsetting revelations about PERIOD’s founder, Kacey and Shyla are moving on. Some PERIOD chapter leaders are dedicating themselves to making things right with their organization’s history and further their anti-oppression work, while Kacey and Shyla’s teams have decided to disassociate.
I spoke with Kacey, the president of PERIOD at McMinnville High School in Oregon, and Shyla, co-president of PERIOD at Redwood High School in California, back in May. Both of these chapters are now disassociating from PERIOD.
What happened? Recently, some disturbing news has come to light about PERIOD and Nadya Okamoto, who founded the organization. I highly encourage you to read about the whole thing at this link, to hear it from Ileri Jaiyeoba. Go ahead, I’ll wait.
Okay, so… there’s a lot to process in here. It shows why we have to hold our leaders accountable, even the young founders of a movement that really inspires people. Okamoto still has space to grow and change as an individual and a movement leader, yet to center this entire conversation on one person doesn’t help very much. This is a larger conversation about equity and intersectionality, because Okamoto isn’t the only one to engage in such exploitative behaviors and performative activism.
Regardless of the upsetting revelations about PERIOD’s founder, Kacey and Shyla are moving on. Some PERIOD chapter leaders are dedicating themselves to making things right with their organization’s history and further their anti-oppression work, while Kacey and Shyla’s teams have decided to disassociate.
 |
| @period.mcminnvillehs |
 |
| @periodrhs |
Kacey and Shyla aren’t performative activists. They are organizers of dedicated teams of students, ready to support their community through a pandemic and a wave of outrage and action with the Movement for Black Lives. McMinnville High School has about 12 people who come consistently to meetings. At Redwood High School, Shyla’s new chapter is “still small, but we have an amazing group of girls who each have the confidence and resilience to conquer anything.”
The COVID-19 pandemic makes period poverty an even heavier burden for low-income and at-risk menstruators. Back when PERIOD at McMinnville High School was associated with PERIOD National, they requested 2 thousand period products and distributed them around their community. This resulted in over 150 periods served.
 |
| @periodrhs |
Redwood High School did something similar. Here’s how Shyla described their latest efforts:
“PERIOD @ Redwood HS has only been a chapter for a few months, but we wanted to help out our community immediately. With the pandemic in full motion, the automatic response had people stockpiling menstrual health products, and though many students and families in our district were equipped for the next months of quarantine those, who encountered period poverty had been forced to resort to unhygienic methods of maintaining their periods (like cardboard, paper, old rags). We emailed our district board a couple of weeks ago, to see if we could fix this, and asked (more like demanded haha) if they could provide period products at the school’s free meal drive-through. There were many emails and Zoom calls, but eventually they let us set up a tent right next to the drive-through, and offer free menstrual hygiene packages to anyone who needs them.”
“I know a lot of people personally that have struggled to actually access period products. Because I was in a position of privilege, I decided to actually act, so I started the PERIOD club at my school,” Kacey explained when I asked how she got involved with PERIOD. These former chapters were created to fill a need that’s still present, regardless of PERIOD’s history. As Shyla told me, her group isn’t completely sure of the plan going forward, but there will be a more local focus to their work.
Shyla expressed a desire to engage more with the advocacy side of the menstrual movement. “When school is back in session, our goal will be to provide free products in all bathrooms on our school’s campus,” she told me, because her state has already temporarily removed the tampon tax. This is a great example of strategically choosing which level of government/administration to focus on!
Kacey’s team has similar ambitions. “Ever since we’ve existed, [advocacy] been there but on the backburner,” she told me, “We focus more on fundraising, but one of my goals going into this next school year is to focus on policy. We already have a team of people working on drafting a petition.” They are shooting for December of next year, for the school district to pass a measure to provide period products in all middle school and high school restrooms.
For today’s call to action, check out the Black-led period equity organizations Jaiyeoba highlights towards the end of her article: @hatethedot, @flocodexo, @wearehappyperiod, and @coderedco.
“Especially today, it’s more important than ever to pay attention to period poverty. It goes unrecognized outside of people who are really looking,” Kacey reminded me. She is absolutely right. Rather than letting this controversy tear apart the good work that PERIOD volunteers have done, Kacey and Shyla are committing to an even better form of the menstrual movement, one that is actually equitable.
“PERIOD @ Redwood HS has only been a chapter for a few months, but we wanted to help out our community immediately. With the pandemic in full motion, the automatic response had people stockpiling menstrual health products, and though many students and families in our district were equipped for the next months of quarantine those, who encountered period poverty had been forced to resort to unhygienic methods of maintaining their periods (like cardboard, paper, old rags). We emailed our district board a couple of weeks ago, to see if we could fix this, and asked (more like demanded haha) if they could provide period products at the school’s free meal drive-through. There were many emails and Zoom calls, but eventually they let us set up a tent right next to the drive-through, and offer free menstrual hygiene packages to anyone who needs them.”
“I know a lot of people personally that have struggled to actually access period products. Because I was in a position of privilege, I decided to actually act, so I started the PERIOD club at my school,” Kacey explained when I asked how she got involved with PERIOD. These former chapters were created to fill a need that’s still present, regardless of PERIOD’s history. As Shyla told me, her group isn’t completely sure of the plan going forward, but there will be a more local focus to their work.
Shyla expressed a desire to engage more with the advocacy side of the menstrual movement. “When school is back in session, our goal will be to provide free products in all bathrooms on our school’s campus,” she told me, because her state has already temporarily removed the tampon tax. This is a great example of strategically choosing which level of government/administration to focus on!
Kacey’s team has similar ambitions. “Ever since we’ve existed, [advocacy] been there but on the backburner,” she told me, “We focus more on fundraising, but one of my goals going into this next school year is to focus on policy. We already have a team of people working on drafting a petition.” They are shooting for December of next year, for the school district to pass a measure to provide period products in all middle school and high school restrooms.
For today’s call to action, check out the Black-led period equity organizations Jaiyeoba highlights towards the end of her article: @hatethedot, @flocodexo, @wearehappyperiod, and @coderedco.
“Especially today, it’s more important than ever to pay attention to period poverty. It goes unrecognized outside of people who are really looking,” Kacey reminded me. She is absolutely right. Rather than letting this controversy tear apart the good work that PERIOD volunteers have done, Kacey and Shyla are committing to an even better form of the menstrual movement, one that is actually equitable.
 |
| @periodrhs |
Comments
Post a Comment