Page 3066 - Week 09 - Thursday, 13 October 2022
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Sanitary Secrets shows the codification of menstruation through the use of the colour blue to represent blood; an association with high fashion modelling and the colour white to imply a need for purity; the confinement of women to domestic situations in traditionally female spaces—because, heaven forbid, a period happened in a place that was not feminised; as well as an oversexualisation of young women. The ads also modelled and reinforced secretive behaviour between female friends, with males, and between mothers and daughters, in the images and texts presented and through the product design.
The ads are a stark example of how we continue to reinforce the entrenched stigma and taboo of periods. However, they are by no means the only example. One of the greatest cultural phenomena of my younger years was the Harry Potter series. Young people around the globe flocked to the books and their youth empowerment message. I was, however, and still remain, amazed that, in the seven years of saving her friend’s family, unwitting muggles in the wizarding world, from the dementors and death eaters and the evil Lord Voldemort, Hermione Granger never once experienced a period cramp. This oversight sticks out even more as, through the series, Hermione grows from a young girl to an adult and goes through every other adolescent experience.
You cannot be what you cannot see, and the way we sanitise menstruation out of our day-to-day existence makes it very difficult to be a person who menstruates and can just get on with it—it being a normal bodily function that affects half the population on a regular basis. Removing obstacles to period management and reducing the stigma associated with periods are themes that I have been doing a lot of work on through this term of government. I have heard from and spoken to countless constituents, Labor Party members, stakeholders, friends and family about these topics.
I have run a survey in conjunction with the Period Products and Facilities (Access) Bill, and I was pleased to be invited to be a guest speaker at the Share the Dignity Global Period Poverty Forum on Monday this week, in Brisbane, which was a great way to begin in a week in which I am also moving this motion here in the Assembly. The actions that this motion calls on the ACT government to undertake fit well within the broader body of work I have been doing this term and I am pleased to present it to members today.
The discussion about the idea of menstrual leave has been on the rise within the organised workforce and civil society in Australia for a while. The survey that I have been running in conjunction with the Period Products and Facilities (Access) Bill has shown that 85 per cent of respondents support the idea of investigating the potential for paid menstrual leave. Fundamentally, the interest in this issue arises because of the impact that pain, complications and management associated with periods can have on those who menstruate, primarily women, in the workplace.
Almost half of the population may need to use their personal leave or other leave entitlements due to the management needs of their periods at some point in their career. For those who regularly have more painful periods, this can have a large impact on their leave entitlements. This can subsequently lead to a loss of pay and superannuation if personal leave is exhausted.
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