If you’re a menstruator, you might have seen the free period products available in the girls’ bathrooms. The ones responsible for these helpful tools? The Free Period Club here at the High School. This group strives to create a future free from period poverty and to create an environment comfortable for menstruators (Free Period Site). The club is also part of a greater good of advocates trying to help menstruators around the Boston area stand up for what they believe in and make a significant impact. The representatives of Free Period are dedicated to educating our area about menstrual equality.
For many menstruators, period products may be difficult to afford or not easily accessible. Because of this, members of the Free Period Club plus some other Free Period organizers decided to take it into their own hands by putting free period products in every gender neutral and girls’ bathroom at the high school. The products that they have provided have helped many students, based on the form the club sent out. Freshman Corinne Granoff explains, “These products have helped me a lot because if I’m on my period and I did not bring anything, these are easily accessible.”
President Elsie Olin says that it wasn’t always easy to make this club happen. Elsie says, “After a donation of products from Kenzie Blackwell and survey responses from students saying that products would be beneficial, we were ready to present to the administration. Except, our ideas were shot down by the administration and we had to counter and advocate for the rights of menstruating students. After tedious work, we were able to get products approved and available in every Hingham High School women’s and gender neutral bathroom.” The work put in by the club has proved to be successful, as students at Hingham High no longer need to worry about bringing products to school or being able to afford them.
Not only is the Free Period group helping students at Hingham High, they are also helping advocate for menstruators all over Massachusetts. One of the presidents for this club, Madeleine Accettella, informed me about their goals. She says, “Free Period Talk is an interscholastic community of leaders fighting for menstrual equity (the idea that all people who menstruate should have access to period products), especially in Massachusetts for our schools.” She also mentions how they use the term menstruators to be more inclusive for everyone.
Currently, they are working to get the I AM Bill passed, so that all prisons, public schools, and shelters have access to free period products. The presidents encourage students to join the Free Period Club so that more people have access to free period products around the school, and in the community.
