Migration and reproductive justice intersect. Forced displacement, poverty and poor access to essential support for migrants underpin the exacerbation of period poverty and poor reproductive health outcomes. Refugees, asylum seekers, and other individuals who have been forcibly displaced repeatedly experience limited access to sanitary and period products over the course of their migration journey, as well as unsafe spaces to attend to their menstrual health. Furthermore, research and casework by Migrant Action and many of our partners has consistently demonstrated the significant financial barriers for migrants that are in the UK. These barriers, which include immigration charging regimes; restrictions on the right to work for asylum seekers; and the exploitative certificate of sponsorship scheme, leave many individuals in a position of poverty, often with No Recourse to Public Funds and support from the State. Because sanitary products are not free or accessible in the UK, many migrants who are struggling financially are then unable to access these essential items and be able to attend to their menstrual health with dignity and autonomy.
The lack of access for period products and safe spaces to practice menstrual health is exacerbated by the culture of shame, stigmatisation and menstrual taboo which exists across many cultures and can impact how individuals who menstruate navigate their daily life and activities. For example, many individuals report that their ability to learn, work, exercise and generally be in public is hindered by their lack of access to period products and the shame that they carry.
This multifaceted issue of reproductive and period justice and the ways it intersects with migration justice has been highlighted to us through our service delivery practices, and we have seen first-hand the challenges and hardships this is bringing to our community. Migrant Action is committed to being a dynamic organisation that can be consistently responsive to the needs of our community as they emerge, working collaboratively and in solidarity.
It is within this context of collaboration and solidarity that Migrant Action developed an impactful partnership partnered with ‘Bloody Good Period’ (charity) to support our community with access to period products, as well as a safe space for them to engage with and attend to their menstrual health. Bloody Good Period adopts an intersectional approach that not only provides practical support and essential items for menstrual health but works to de-stigmatize menstruation and provide menstrual health education to individuals that cannot access it. The research they produce connects the issue of period poverty with many other systems of injustice and works to dismantle period injustice for all.
Our service users in Barnsley who have been utilising our collaboration with Bloody Good Period have shared some feedback with us which has provided us with an insight into the impact of this new initiative:
We are grateful to have also been provided with feedback on how to make this initiative even more successful in supporting period justice within migrant communities. One suggestion is to introduce more discreet bags for individuals to take items home in which will help them to feel empowered even after leaving the safe space. Two other key suggestions were to expand our network and collaborations further to involve other organisations so that we can keep up with the high demand, and reach more ‘hard to reach groups’ groups; and for greater awareness and engagement of period poverty within schools to provide help for families with menstruating parents and children. This feedback reflects the multi-faceted issue of reproductive justice and demonstrates why simply period products alone is not enough to counter period inequality. Our client voice guides our approach and frameworks, and so Migrant Action and Bloody Good Period will be working together to respond to these suggestions and refine our initiative which is already having such a positive impact.
Thank you to Bloody Good Period for this collaboration and their work to achieve period justice FOR ALL.
