Periods and Rules and Rights

Ever since the start of 2016 I had been just too lazy to get writing. Even though there were lots of topics that I wanted to write about, I just didn’t feel up to it. And once again it’s that time of the year. International Women’s Day is just around the corner and it is high time I shake off the excess lethargy and get back to doing what I do best – talk about social issues, especially gender issues; period.

I have to start with a minor incident which infuriated me quite a bit, even though it doesn’t really affect me in any way directly. I do not have many good memories of my school life. Now most people just think that that’s a horrible thing to say about one’s school. But my school’s administration is known for making crazy illogical rules and regulations which sometimes violates the basic human rights and I am thankful that I have graduated already and don’t have to tolerate all those nonsense. My school’s newest rule is: GIRLS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO BRING SANITARY NAPKINS TO SCHOOL. IF PADS ARE FOUND, THEN THOSE WILL BE CONFISCATED. IF IT IS NECESSARY, THEN GIRLS HAVE TO BUY IT FROM THE SCHOOL. Isn’t that sweet?

First and foremost I must mention that it is an all-girl missionary school. Many of you might not find it offensive, but the truth is lots of people do. It’s a matter of personal choice as to which brand of napkin a girl wants to wear. The period pattern, the flow, the size of pad used, its length, its thickness, whether or not it has wings… these are all personal choices of an individual and also a matter of habit. If somebody forcefully takes away that choice and freedom from the girls and teaches them that as members of the weaker sex, they must learn how to make the best out of a bad situation that had been imposed on them, then I am not going to tolerate it patiently with a smile!

Menstruation is the order of nature and one must not try to go against it. It’s not something that girls just do for the sake of fun. Carrying pads just ensures us girls a way to be able to keep it under control. When a rule like this is imposed, it is not just devoid of logic but also a plain denial of basic rights. It is basically like the Salt Tax imposed during the British Rule – you had to buy salt at an inhumanely high price even though it was a basic necessity and could be prepared very easily. Because of the stigma associated with menstruation, girls do not even have a choice in this matter. They HAVE TO use pads and buy them too instead of just bringing it from their homes.

Moreover if a girl has heavy flow, then she’ll require frequent changing of pads, while a girl with very light flow might not need to change at all. Is that not unfair for some while others make money per pad they sell? When issues like pink tax are being talked about worldwide, how can things like this be expected from popular institutions? I’ll soon write more about period shaming and pink tax. If you have an opinion, do comment.