Troop# 2607
History
Periods are as old as, well, women. So how did women deal with them throughout history and in other cultures? What's new now?
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From Rubber Aprons to Menstrual Cups and "Period" Control Pills
The 1850's had rubber aprons, and in 1896 there were special towels, that apparently no one wanted to buy. Then in 1920, the Kotex company created the first menstrual pad, using loads of cotton-acrylic cellulose that was left over from treating soldiers in World War I. They were sold in department stores for 5 cents each. Next came one of the first menstrual belts (1922), and in 1930 the first menstrual cup was introduced, by Leona Chalmers. Then in 1931 came the first tampon, and in 1933, Gertrude Tendrich bought the patent and created Tampax! Finally in 2003, birth, or rather period, control pills were approved by the FDA so women could fully control when and if to have their period. See a slideshow here: ​
https://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/g19991273/period-products-through-the-years/?slide=1
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An Expensive "Luxury" in India
In India, there was a 12% tax on feminine hygiene products for about a year, under the national Goods and Services tax. Prior to the GST, the tax was 13.7%! This part of the GST was just recently repealed, in July of 2018.
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Australia Ends Tampon Tax on October 3, 2018, After 18-Year Struggle
Tampons and other feminine hygiene products had a 10% tax since 2000, while things like condoms and Viagra had no tax.
http://time.com/5413585/australia-ends-tampon-tax-gst/
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Women are DYING in Nepal Due to Outdated and Dangerous Period Practices
In Nepal, many communities, especially in rural areas, still cling to an old Hindu tradition that says menstruating women can bring sickness, death, and bad luck to their families and livestock, so they must sleep outdoors. For up to a week. The practice was outlawed in August 2018, but it's still being followed. Many women die during this exile, most due to smoke inhalation. The women must sleep outdoors even in winter, with temps below freezing, so they light fires. And many die from the smoke. One woman died from a snake bite.
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http://observers.france24.com/en/20180525-women-nepal-segregated-period-prison-menstruation
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Periods as a Social Justice Issue
Jennifer Weiss-Wolf, Vice President for Development at the Brennan Center for Justice, wrote a book about the tampon tax called Periods Gone Public. She wrote that "managing menstruation is a critical aspect of the lives and civic participation of more than half the population".
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We couldn't agree more! It's hard to find time (and money) to participate in important social and civic activities if you have to spend time figuring out how you can afford to take care of your feminine hygiene needs every month.
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Menstrual Products are Now Free in Federal Prisons
This is as of summer of 2017. It sounds positive, but less than 10% of incarcerated women are housed in federal prisons. Most are in state or local jails, which all have their own policies about this. Arizona is considering a bill that would give incarcerated women all the menstrual products they need. Right now, they are only allowed 12 free pads a month and are only allowed to have a maximum of 24 at any given time. (Who makes these rules???)
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https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/state-prison-free-pads-tampons_us_5a7b427be4b08dfc92ff5231
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Some Ancient Cultures Saw Menstruation as Magical, But Others as Unclean
There's not much in the history books about menstruation (go figure), but there are some historical references. A few cultures thought it's magical -- a Roman philosopher wrote that a nude menstruating woman can prevent hailstorms and lightning -- pretty cool! And in ancient Egypt, menstrual blood was used in some medicines. But most cultures took a dimmer view. Mayans thought that menstruation was a punishment by the gods (understandable). And ancient Hebrew women had to be in seclusion and apart from others for seven days during their cycle.
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https://www.medicaldaily.com/menstrual-period-time-month-history-387252
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Heroic Man in Rural India Invents Machine to Make Low-Cost Pads
A man in rural India found that his wife was using old tattered rags during her periods because the family couldn't afford to buy pads. They were sold at a huge mark-up, making them unaffordable for most women. So he devised his own pads and even tested them himself! People thought he was crazy, and his wife left him, but he persisted. He made a machine that can easily and cheaply produce pads so that all women, even in rural areas, could have access to them. His machine was given a national innovation award by India's president. Pads made with his machines are available in 1,300 villages in 23 states in India.
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