Tag: MHM

Periodenarmut

Pünktlich zum Menstrual Hygiene Day (#menstrualhygieneday) am 28. Mai 2019 gibt es im Deutschen Bundestag eine Petition, die einen ermäßigten Mehrwertsteuersatz von 7 Prozent für „Periodenprodukte wie Binden, Tampons und Menstruationstassen” fordert. Die Petition hat kurz vor Schluss die erforderliche Zahl an Unterzeichnern erhalten und so bleibt jetzt abzuwarten, was sich aus diesem Wunsch der Bürger*innen an den Bundestag ergeben wird. Ich habe diese Petition auch unterzeichnet, aber aus einem anderen Grund als in der Petition gefordert.

Bild einer Binde
Gutes Sanitation-Marketing ist die halbe Miete. Hier: Witzige Produkte von Einhorn.

Die Bedeutung der Mehrwertsteuer als hier dienliches Mittel, die tatsächliche Ersparnis durch eine Absenkung der Steuer, andere Sparmethoden und die Verwendung des Begriffs “Luxussteuer” wurde auf einem anderen Blog(post) bereits diskutiert. Auch die dortige Behauptung, dass das Thema im feministischen Umfeld gerne als Unterdrückung wahrgenommen wird, lasse ich mal unkommentiert. Continue reading “Periodenarmut”

We put the men in menstruation… (DE)

Frauen, die Männer dafür verantwortlich machen, dass das schöne Thema „Menstruation” nicht den gleichen Stellenwert erreicht hat, wie andere Themen, die viel selbstverständlicher und öffentlicher diskutiert werden.

Menstrual Hygiene Day is celebrated on May 28th around the world.

Das ist es im Grunde, was mich als Mann und Aktivist im Bereich des Menstrual Hygiene Mangements in der Diskussion immer so stört. Dass Frauen gerne über ihre Menstruation und verschiedene Hygieneprodukte reden möchten (oder auch nicht), dann aber Schwierigkeiten damit haben, wenn Männer davon erfahren und/oder sich auch zu dem Thema äußern (auch wenn sie keine Ahnung haben). Oder die Frauen die Männer gar für die Gesamtsituation verantwortlich machen. Oder aber in den sozialen Medien Bilder ihrer Menstruationstassen veröffentlichen (yay!) und dann alle Männer regelmäßig in einen Sack stecken, weil sich ein paar unreife Exemplare meines Geschlechts darüber aufregen. Continue reading “We put the men in menstruation… (DE)”

Toilet flash mob in Berlin on International Women’s Day

students in front of a toilet in Berlin during International Women's Day
Toilet flash mob in Berlin, via German Toilet Organization

On the occasion of International Women’s Day, Berlin pupils and the German Toilet Organization (GTO) staged an unexpected scene at the Washington Square in front of Berlin Central Station. In the focus of the flash mob were two toilet stalls, one for women, one for men. With a disproportionately long queue in front of the ladies – a well-known image – the pupils called attention to the lack of equality between the sexes in front of the loo.

According to the World Health Organization, one in three women worldwide have no access to safe and clean sanitation. In poor neighborhoods of urban areas the only existing public toilets are rarely gender-separated. More than 500 million women and girls therefore do their business outdoors. Many go only at night, in order to protect their privacy. This is not only unhealthy, but also makes them prone to harassment and sexual assaults.

“Good sanitation is not only a key to development, but also to equal rights for women and girls,” says Thilo Panzerbieter, Executive Director of GTO. Especially in the field of education, access to an adequate school toilet plays a crucial role in school attendances. “About half of all girls in least developed countries attend schools with none or only very inadequate sanitation,” adds Panzerbieter. The lack of privacy and poor hygiene conditions lead to school dropouts as soon as the girls reach puberty. These problems can be greatly reduced by improving sanitation in schools. According to a study by UNICEF in Bangladesh improved school toilets led to an increase of 11% in girl attendances.

MENSTRAVAGANZA #MHDay

WASH United, the international social impact organization that “combines the power of sports superstars, interactive games and positive communication to excite people about sanitation and practicing good hygiene” just wrapped up its 28-day campaign dedicated to shedding more light on menstruation and Menstrual Hygiene Mangement (MHM):

Menstravaganza

May #MENSTRAVAGANZA Day 28: BIG NEWS! Today wraps up our 28-day campaign dedicated to shedding more light on menstruation & MHM. THANKS FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT! WASH United, together with amazing global partners, announces that it will make May 28th a globally-recognised Menstrual Hygiene Day. Will you join us in supporting #MHDay?

(src: WASH United FB page)

Yes, of course! MHM is such an important and often still neglected hygiene issue that we urgently need to keep the conversations going – beyond this 28-day campaign. Online and offline.

Please also be reminded that the Sustainable Sanitation Alliance (SuSanA) dedicated a category on its forum to this matter where professional conversations on everything around MHM are already taking place. A few scientists and activists exchanging ideas online certainly won’t be enough, which is why this idea of celebrating May 28th as an international Menstravangaza Day is a smart move.

What I really like about WASH United (the link opens their very active Facebook group) and why their work matters to me: our target group (the people) usually doesn’t pay attention to scientists, but they do hear what superstars say. Remember Angelina Jolie’s preventive double mastectomy? Right. Now, if we can achieve a similar open conversation on MHM the way we are now already talking about (the lack of decent) toilets or mastectomy, then we may have achieved more than what could probably be done via the usual top-down approaches in dev aid.

Let’s put the “men” in Menstravaganza!

P.S.: Did you know there’s an online museum on Menstruation? It’s called “Museum of Menstruation & Women’s Health“. Oh, and the Menstrupedia is also very informative!