People don’t talk about periods, and they talk even less about ‘period poverty’

People don’t talk about periods. This natural bodily function remains stigmatized. An estimated 1.8 billion people around the world menstruate monthly, and many of them do not have access to the products they need to manage and maintain a healthy period, according to UNICEF. Because this is a topic that people are encouraged to keep a secret, many who can’t afford products aren’t able to access them in other ways — perhaps shame prevents them from asking for help, or they aren’t aware of resources available. Period poverty affects people of color, low-income and unhoused people the hardest. A Reuters survey found that two-thirds of low-income women could not afford pads or tampons in 2018. 

As a 2022 National Fellow, I decided to look into community driven solutions in one of Chicago’s Latino neighborhoods. I researched laws that support menstrual equity in Illinois and dove into what period poverty and menstruation can look like for transgender and gender non-conforming individuals. At the beginning of the process, I decided to create surveys to gather information on what people already knew, what they wanted to learn, and how they experienced menstruation. Period poverty is an underreported issue, especially at the local level, and I wanted to gain insight on those who menstruate in my state. 

As I mentioned in an earlier post on this site, although Black and Latinx people are the most affected by this issue, the menstrual equity space is dominated by white, cisgender women. Working in a local newsroom that focuses on the Hispanic-Latino community, and as a Latina myself, I felt it was important to tell this story through a lens that our audience could identify with. In addition to the Latinx community, I wanted to center on all marginalized voices, which I most visibly accomplished in the Community Conversation: What is Period Poverty? virtual event. It’s one thing to tell people’s stories in writing, however nothing is more impactful than listening to people share their firsthand experiences in their own words. The most meaningful part of this experience, for me, was finding so many people willing to talk about some of their most vulnerable moments. It was so empowering to see folks vocalize their struggles, without the fear of being judged. The discussion was a step in the direction of normalizing menstruation and period poverty, so that others do not have to struggle as well. 

To future fellows, if you pursue a story that many people may not know or care about, I highly recommend incorporating some sort of video element into your project. I had several cisgender men tell me, after the conversation aired, how striking the video interviews were and how it helped them understand why this is a problem. It was invaluable to the overall conversation. 

Early on in the process, I realized that many people did not know what period poverty was. Including definitions in everything I did, even in reaching out to sources, was crucial. 

Period poverty is the lack of access to menstrual products, but it is also the lack of access to hygiene facilities, waste management and education. There is a common misconception that you only experience period poverty if you’re homeless or facing extreme poverty, and this isn’t the case. In fact, according to the survey results, only 39% of participants said they have experienced period poverty, while 48% said that they have struggled to purchase period products before. That is more than a 10% difference. I asked these two questions back-to-back to test my hypothesis that people did not fully understand the phrase. Based on these survey responses, I would say that is true. If you have struggled to pay for period products, then you have experienced period poverty. 

I was also committed to including the experiences of transgender and gender non-conforming people who experience periods and period poverty. This is a gendered health issue, usually considered a women’s issue, but not everybody who gets a period identifies as a woman, and not every woman gets a period. According to the Williams Institute at UCLA, 21% of transgender people lived in poverty in 2021, meaning many of them are also experiencing period poverty. But there are nuances that come with being transgender, especially transmasculine, and menstruation. For many, it can be dysphoric to live as a man but have a monthly reminder of a gender you don’t identify with. It was important to approach this topic with care, reminding sources that they have the power to share only as much as they wish to and that they don’t owe me their story. As journalists we hold so much power in extracting information from people, and it is essential to not feel entitled and remind our sources that this story is theirs. 

This was the first long term project I had taken on as a reporter. I had so many questions, especially about producing an hour-long, virtual event. My advice to other reporters is to ask every question you have. There are no dumb questions. Find other experienced journalists to seek guidance from. Talk about your project with others and bounce ideas off of them. By a chance encounter with a member of WBEZ’s engagement team, I just happened to talk about this project I was working on, and that struck interest and led to an amazing team joining me to produce the event. Had I not had that conversation, this portion of my project would have looked completely different. 

My series received great feedback from people who tuned into the event and read the stories. I was contacted by people all over the country. Still, I felt like my reporting wasn’t complete. I wanted to do more — there is just so much to unpack related to how different communities experience period poverty. My last piece of advice is to know that your work in a subject does not have to end when the fellowship is over. I was never a health reporter before this. I didn’t want to put myself in a box. However, this subject has become a passion of mine and has led to a new role as a sexual health and reproductive justice reporter, where I get to continue talking about these vital issues.