At the high school level, Period advocates in Beaverton, Oregon, started a petition to get menstrual hygiene products in their schools and spoke at the Board of Education in Greenwich, Connecticut. Period chapter members have pushed for period products at UC Davis, University of Washington, and UT Austin, to name a few. And Yale student Sophie Ascheim produced an Oscar-winning Netflix documentary, *Period. End of Sentence*.
And on January 28, 2019, during a DC Day of Action, many activists called for Betsy DeVos to take action on menstrual equality in schools. The letter, which was signed by both Okamoto and Maria Molland, CEO of THINX, states that Devos has a “profound responsibility to create ‘safe and trusted’ environments for students across the nation,” which includes access to period products.
When it comes to legislation already passed regarding access to tampons in schools, in California, some (but not all) schools serving grades 6–12 are required to provide free tampons in all gender neutral and girls’ bathrooms. And in Illinois, New York, and most recently New Hampshire, all schools with grades 6–12 are required to do the same. Similarly, the city of Boston recently announced that it will be launching a pilot program with free menstrual products in public schools this fall, Portland Public Schools will now grant $25,000 a year for menstrual products, and a number of other districts are in talks to implement similar policies.
The second legislative push: to eliminate the tampon tax nationwide.
The “tampon tax” refers to a state sales tax that would be waived if menstrual products were legally considered “medical necessities.” Although the exact rules may vary from state to state, nonprescription drug and medical products like dandruff shampoo, ibuprofen, and cough drops are generally considered medical necessities and therefore exempt from state sales tax. But in 34 states, tampons and pads are not.
Period advocates have been spreading awareness about the tampon tax and advocating to eliminate it. At Ohio State University, students spoke out on the issue with lawmakers such as Ohio state representative Brigid Kelly. These students also worked with state representatives to introduce a bill that focuses on exempting period products from the sales tax in Ohio. The bill was passed in the Ohio House but, according to Okamoto, was terminated in the State Senate. Okamoto says that advocates in Ohio are “working to reintroduce it soon.”
While states such as Nevada, New York, Florida, Connecticut, Illinois, and Washington, D.C., have already eliminated their tampon tax, many others have not. Although legislators introduced bills to get rid of the tax in 22 other states, these efforts have yet to be successful. With that said, Rhode Island may be next on the list.
“We cannot end this tax yet because there is a lack of knowledge. The majority of legislators I talk to have not heard of the tampon tax. They will openly tell me that this is the first time they are hearing about it,” Okamoto says.
Here’s how to get involved in the campaign
Following National Period Day, for which Period has already posted 12 rally events in 11 different states on Facebook (with 10 other states confirmed for rallies), Okamoto has planned a whole schedule for action that you can get in on.
Beginning this fall, Period will hold nationwide donation drives to collect menstrual products for people in need. Okamoto hopes that the winter will bring meetings with state legislators to share example bills, as well as lobby days on Capitol Hill. And in March, Period will host its third PeriodCon, a summit that unites leaders and advocates across the menstrual movement for two days of programming and events.
“This is the first-ever nationally coordinated grassroots campaign about periods,” Okamoto says. “This isn’t just me and my cofounders standing up and doing this. We’re not just a few tokenized teenagers caring about this. This has grown into now almost 500 chapters actively doing this in all 50 states. I want to create platforms for local young leaders to get the credibility and recognition for the work they’re doing in this movement.”
Related:
- This Teacher's Reddit Post Reminds Us We Should Start Talking About Periods Way Earlier
- 8 Period Myths Many People With Periods Still Get Wrong
- ‘Organic’ Tampons Are All The Rage, But Your vagin* Doesn't Need Them
