Women, you can put the paper down and stop reading or move to another page or article. You already understand the issue and what needs to be done.
Men — especially any who are members of our state’s Senate — you need to read this.
The male species has it rather easy in many regards. Men cannot get pregnant, they do not experience actual childbirth and they do not have to deal with a monthly menstrual cycle. Many might not even realize that not all cycles are created equal. Some women and girls can have a period that lasts well more than one week a month. Some experience cycles that are shorter in duration and might even have a somewhat unpredictable schedule.
Young men and adult men you should think about that and imagine if you had to contend with having a menstrual cycle. School-age boys often have easy and free access to condoms when they become sexually active, but many school-age girls do not have ready access to pads and tampons when their cycle begins.
Feminine hygiene products are a necessity, but they are sometimes out of reach, financially, for young women and girls who live in poverty or are in a homeless or safe shelter. Or, frankly, in the event they are caught off guard during school hours and don’t have a pad or tampon with them.
Thanks in large part to an organization aptly named The Period Project, which operates in many states and is headquartered in South Carolina, awareness about the need for easy and affordable access to feminine hygiene products has been heightened. Visit periodproject.org for more information and how you can help.
On Wednesday, an all-male Senate subcommittee passed a proposal to remove the sales tax from feminine hygiene products. The measure will now go before the full Senate for a vote. Last year, the House approved the bill, 114-0.
No state or federal agency provides, or discounts, menstrual hygiene products. Some do, however, profit from the sale of feminine hygiene products. Our state imposes a tax on sanitary products at the full 6% state sales tax rate. Yet, as The Period Project notes, South Carolina has a long list of tax-exempt items for the state’s tax-free weekend that includes “purses, riding wear, ballet shoes, baby diapers and adult incontinence products” while menstrual hygiene products are not exempt. That’s wrong.
If the proposal to eliminate the sales tax is passed, this is but one step in the right direction that our state will take. We incorporated the illustration of access to feminine hygiene products in schools because there is yet another step that needs to be taken. These products should be readily available to female students who might not be able to afford them or, again, who are caught off guard by the onset of their menstrual cycle during school hours. There should be no roadblocks to access.
We are not advocating for completely free feminine hygiene products. Manufacturers are for-profit entities that are entitled to a profit in order to remain in business. We do, however, join The Period Project in advocating for some balance on the playing field when it comes to tax revenue for the state and access for those who cannot afford the products because of circumstances beyond their control.
South Carolina’s legislative session is drawing to a close. This matter is now up to the state Senate. Senators, do what is right by passing this proposal.
— Index-Journal, Greenwood
