Ready for Menstrual Equity in Massachusetts? I AM, too.
Imagine the utterly unthinkable — entering a public restroom that doesn’t provide free and accessible toilet paper. Maybe the toilet paper is locked behind a dispenser requesting 50 cents to retrieve it, or perhaps there’s just none in sight, causing an incredibly embarrassing struggle as one searches to find an alternative or cough up the change to afford a square of one-ply. This idea is unfathomable to most of us, who are used to having this basic need met in every establishment; From schools to restaurants to gas station bathrooms, it is the norm to supply free toilet paper.
The accepted standard of supplying free toilet paper, paper towels, soap, and other necessities in bathrooms for all to use is not extended to period products, however. The reality is, we do not live in a society that centers, or even acknowledges, the hardships faced by those who menstruate. Research documenting concerning trends like menstruators fashioning make-shift pads out of toilet paper and socks, or even missing school or work due to inability to afford period products, are commonplace. But even though half of the population menstruates, a culture of shame prevents open conversations and solutions.
As someone who experiences menstruation, these narratives ring true. Days of my school friends furtively passing each other pads or tampons when one of us forgot our own, lending a friend your sweater to hide period stains, or always carrying extra pain relievers to dole out when cramps struck defined my adolescent experience, and continue to even in college. While I still do (and always will) carry an extra pad and tampon for friends and strangers in need, one can’t help but become frustrated by double standards. People who do not menstruate need not worry about their needs being met in public bathrooms — the very idea of carrying a nondescript pouch with toilet paper inside in case of emergency sounds ludicrous — but that’s the everyday experience of menstruators.
In Massachusetts, the proposed “I AM” Bill seeks to address this inequality. Initially proposed in 2019, this bill would require Massachusetts to join the growing nationwide movement to provide free and accessible period products in schools, shelters, and prisons for all menstruating individuals. Note the intentional language used in the I AM Bill: “Menstruating individuals” is the term employed, as opposed to “women” or “girls,” as not every woman menstruates, and not everyone who menstruates is a woman. Nonbinary and trans menstruators deserve space in these conversations and access to products, especially since trans people are more likely to live in poverty, and thus face obstacles in affording period products.
The necessity of the I AM Bill is supported by research from Mass NOW, a nonprofit working to advance intersectional feminist activism in Massachusetts. A survey conducted by Mass NOW found that 89% of Massachusetts school nurses reported that their school had no policies surrounding providing students with menstrual products, with many free products being funded by donations or staff’s personal finances alone. School-supplied period products are a critical resource for menstruating students, as 1 out of 7 Massachusetts children live in poverty and struggle to afford products. Even worse, the federal government doesn’t allow food stamps to be used to purchase menstrual products, further widening the barriers to access.
Mass NOW also surveyed 26 homeless shelters across the Commonwealth, finding that 25% do not provide menstrual products. Despite the large need, period products are one of the least donated items to shelters. Access to these vital products should not solely rely on inconsistent donations, but rather should be a dependable resource available to all those experiencing houselessness.
The I AM Bill is currently being reconsidered in the Massachusetts state legislature, so now is the time for MA residents to act. Write to your representatives, sign the petition, share information with your networks, and ensure that the I AM Bill is finally implemented after several long legislative sessions. It’s about time menstruators were centered in public policy, because Massachusetts students, unhoused people, and incarcerated individuals deserve dignity. To be sure, some skeptics may be overconfident in challenging this bill by smugly inquiring where funding for these period products will come from. To that, we must respond: why does no one ask the same question of toilet paper?
Katarina Sousa is a senior at Simmons University in Boston and a Menstrual Equity Researcher.
