Period Panties: The Next Political Issue

Throughout history, menstruation has been something of a taboo topic. So it's quite surprising to see it become an openly debated political issue. Today, periods and feminine hygiene are being discussed in government legislation buildings – something that would never have happened fifty years ago. In fact, fifty years ago, menstruation wouldn't have been mentioned anywhere in polite company.

Needless to say, the discussion is long overdue, and it's been met largely with complete support. On the heels of the decision to exempt feminine hygiene products from tax a few months back, New York City's Mayor de Blasio just signed into law a bill that would provide free sanitary pads to women and girls in public institutions. These institutions will include public schools, shelters, and prisons. The bill passed unanimously.

So what does it mean for women, now that the US political conversation includes menstruation?

Fortunately, the future looks bright. Now that we've broken the barrier into political discourse, women's needs will almost certainly continue to be an issue. With such surprising bi-partisan support of bills like the one passed in New York, we can expect menstruation to become a popular rallying point for future candidates looking to gain broad support.

Specifically, we can expect to see the dialog change from the necessity of sanitary pads and tampons to other forms of menstruation aids, such as period panties. When it comes to talking about underprivileged women and girls (and much of the discussion has centered around providing for this demographic), the cost of replacing ruined underwear and clothing is bound to come up. Just as financially disadvantaged women have trouble affording tampons and pads, so do they struggle more with the burden of leaks and stains. While some people can throw away a stained pair of work pants and buy a new one, others are not so lucky.

But beyond the financial aspect, period panties are about women's comfort and their ability to work and live without worry. For young girls especially, many of whom can't wear tampons, period panties are a godsend. They can save them from embarrassing leaks, and provide them with the ability to play sports without fear. With a quality pair of period panties, no girl ever needs to miss school (or woman miss work) due to a heavy menstrual flow again. It's time we added this to the long-overdue discussion that's currently taking place in local government around the country.

It's encouraging that we're finally at a point when these issues are being discussed, but the discussion still has far to go. Women are speaking up and finally being heard. We said we no longer wanted to pay a luxury tax on necessities, and local governments listened. We said school girls and underprivileged women should have financial help in obtaining pads, and they listened. We said we wanted better options, and invented period panties. Now we want all women and girls to be able to access such materials. Now, we can expect them to listen.

Want to learn more about issues currently affecting women and teen girls, or how to empower yourself with products like period underwear? Check out hundreds of articles on our blog or shop our wide selection of period-proof apparel today!

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