Menstrual Hygiene Day 2020
Mark your calendars for tomorrow, May 28th!
by Rachael Deng, #FTPCA Marketing
Twenty-eight. It’s the atomic mass of silicon, the amount of dominoes in a standard set, and the number of days in the average menstrual cycle.
On May 28th, we’ll gather together to celebrate the Menstrual Hygiene Day (MH Day), an annual awareness day dedicated to lifting taboos surrounding menstruation and advocating for the importance of adequate menstrual hygiene management worldwide. Launched in 2013 by WASH United, a German NGO, this global occasion unites individuals, organizations, businesses, and the media in a joint effort to break the silence around periods—so that we can openly discuss how to support womxn and girls to achieve full health and potential.
And yes, the 28th was chosen to represent the average length of the menstrual cycle! May is the fifth month of the year, so it was only fitting that the date of MH Day also reflected the average duration of menstrual flow: five days.
The Cause: Menstrual Hygiene Management
In our Menstrual Products 101 article, we explained the significance of quality menstrual hygiene management (MHM) and menstrual health and hygiene (MHH). Together, these two factors are crucial for womxn and girls to understand their bodies’ natural, biological phenomena and be able to care for their physical health accordingly.
As the World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations (UN) affirm, menstruation is inextricably linked to issues such as health, education, equity, rights, and empowerment. All of the following concerns undermine the growth opportunities, well-being, and overall social status of menstruators around the world:
- Lack of education about menstrual health and hygienic practices
- Persisting taboos and stigma, both of which stifles open discussion about period-related problems and shames menstruators into losing confidence
- Limited access to hygienic period products
- Poor sanitation infrastructure
Only with proper MHM and MHH can we generate positive ripple effects throughout society and its various facets.
The Occasion: Goals
Since its inception, Menstrual Hygiene Day has grown immensely in impact and outreach. It increasingly makes audible and visible a growing movement that champions personal autonomy, body literacy, and gender equality.
Vision & Mission
As the Menstrual Hygiene Day website states, we envision a day:
To create a world in which every woman and girl is empowered to manage her menstruation safely, hygienically, with confidence and without shame, where no woman or girl is limited by something as natural and normal as her period.
Accordingly, the official mission of MH Day is as follows:
To break the silence, raise awareness and change negative social norms surrounding MHM around the world.
To engage decision-makers at global, national and local levels to increase the political priority for MHM and catalyze action.
Raising awareness
MH Day is a platform that brings together stakeholders at all levels, from individuals to global organizations. Ultimately, the objective is to project a consolidated, strong voice for womxn and girls around the world—a call to tackle the obstacles that hinder adequate MHM.
Therefore, raising awareness will always be a core target for everyone involved in MH Day. In order to catalyze global impact that acknowledges and improves womxn’s rights, this movement needs as many people as possible to be informed and ready to take action. As more people grow aware about the importance of MHM and menstrual equity, we will be better able to address the hardships that menstruators face on their period, and highlight the innovative solutions and initiatives being developed to overcome such barriers.
In essence, MH Day is an event for media work, for raising awareness through various communication outlets. From an individual standpoint, social media is one of the most powerful tools to educate and galvanize people. At the local and national level, we need to build long-term partnerships that can sustain efforts to improve menstrual health.
Government accountability
An extension of raising awareness, another key goal of MH Day is to engage people in dialogue about public health policy. Active advocacy is essential since we desire to integrate menstrual hygiene management (MHM) into policies and programmes at all levels: local, national, and global.
The issue of government accountability for MHM and MHH issues is often even more critical in developing countries, which tend to be more lacking in appropriate infrastructure for menstruators. For example, most developing countries have limited access to period products both in terms of quantity and variety of products. The World Bank has detailed its contributions to the #nomorelimits MHM campaign. UNICEF, among other organizations, has also partnered with government ministries in countries such as Kenya to launch national MHM strategies. MH Day 2020 is an opportunity to amplify such efforts and ensure that positive political action is being taken in all corners of the world.
Menstrual Hygiene Day makes makes audible and visible a growing movement that champions personal autonomy, body literacy, and gender equality.
This Year: Get Involved
#ItsTimeForAction
Each year, MH Day is given a theme to highlight a specific facet of menstrual hygiene management. This year, we face special circumstances due to COVID-19; however, periods don’t stop for pandemics, and coronavirus is no exception. MH Day thus reinforces the themes It’s Time for Action and Periods In Pandemics, emphasizing the urgent need to collectively:
- Reverse the negative stigma and social norms surrounding menstruation
- Expedite progress in empowering womxn and girls, to unlock their full educational and economic potential
An Official Symbol
For 2020, the MH Day organizers are establishing a simple yet powerful and universal symbol of the movement: the Menstruation Bracelet. Just like the rainbow Pride flag for LGBTQ+ rights, this bracelet represents a show of support for a worthwhile cause. As the DIY bracelet template (try making your own!) shows, the bracelet has 28 beads to symbolize the menstrual cycle, with 5 red ones representing the average duration of a period.
By following the handy Menstruation Bracelet Guide, you can join the bracelet campaign and spread the word. In the guide, you’ll find illustrations, GIFs for Instagram stories, and text snippets ready for you to share in seconds—so don’t hesitate, hop on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter! Participating in this social media campaign and pushing the hashtags #ItsTimeForAction, #MHDay2020, and #PeriodsInPandemics to trend will help engage decision-makers and influential figures for a stronger impact.
Work From Home, Engage From Home
In lieu of the COVID-19 pandemic, WASH United is streaming the first official broadcast of MH Day—live from Berlin—on May 28th. Studio MH Day will feature highlights from menstrual health and hygiene campaigns across the globe, as well as insightful conversations with coalitions, policymakers, activists, and more. Social media will also be updated routinely with coverage. For details on how and when to join, visit the list of MH Day 2020 online events.
Although you might be stuck at home, the opportunity to connect with a global community of passionate advocates has never been better. From joining the Menstruation Bracelet challenge, to getting active on social media, to tuning into Studio MH Day, show the world that #ItsTimeForAction!
As you finish reading, we ask that you take these last 30 seconds to stop anything else you’re doing… and grab a sticky note, pull up your Google Calendar, or open the Notes app on your phone. Whatever you choose, make a note to yourself for tomorrow, May 28th—“GET HYPED for Menstrual Hygiene Day!”
If you liked this article, please like our Facebook page, check out our LinkedIn, and follow us at @freetheperiodca on Instagram! To learn more about our coalition, visit us at freetheperiodca.org. And keep tuning in for more content and updates on Medium!
