Michigan Period Action Day: How to Get Involved in Lansing

As bills move through Michigan's legislation to end taxation on essential hygiene items like tampons, Period Action Day is coming at the perfect time.

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About Period Action Day (PAD)

There is a lot of work to be done when it comes to the stigma, inequality, etc. of menstruation. This is a day dedicated to that and more.

The official Period Action Day (PAD) website says it is "a day to take action against period poverty and stigma, and to celebrate the ongoing work of menstrual equity activists around the world."

Taking place the second weekend of October, PAD says this is done on purpose to be celebrated closely to October 11th, International Day of the Girl.

International Day of the Girl is a day to acknowledge and take action on issues regarding adolescent girls. That includes "Period Poverty."

"Period Poverty" is something we have talked about before and it's something that isn't much of a second thought to some, while for others it is something that not only affects their hygiene but their life, education, careers and more.

How You Can Get Involved - MI PAD Events

There are Period Action Day events scheduled to happen all over, here in Michigan though, there was something special happening on October 6th.

Remember those "tampon tax" bills we mentioned earlier? Well, on this "Legislative Day", PAD participants got the chance to speak one-on-one with our state senators on the Finance Committee about the importance of SB153 and SB 154, the bills currently awaiting their approval.

On Saturday, October 9th, the "#MiPAD: Michigan Rally to End the Tax on Menstrual Products" will be taking place at the Michigan Capitol Mall from noon to 2 PM.

In stark contrast to 2020's event, according to the PAD website, this year's (masked) rally will be "the country's largest in-person rally" as people unite "to demand fair taxation and an end to period discrimination."

Other Ways to Get Involved

If you cannot make it to a live event, there are still plenty of ways to make an impact on Period Action Day.

A few examples #MIPAD gives include:

Hosting a menstrual product drive in your community
Donating financially
Purchasing a #MIPAD shirt or hat where the proceeds benefit the rally and organizations involved (CLICK HERE)
Visit taxfreeperiod.com
Call up/Contact local legislature urging them to get behind these bills

LOOK: Milestones in women's history from the year you were born

Women have left marks on everything from entertainment and music to space exploration, athletics, and technology. Each passing year and new milestone makes it clear both how recent this history-making is in relation to the rest of the country, as well as how far we still need to go. The resulting timeline shows that women are constantly making history worthy of best-selling biographies and classroom textbooks; someone just needs to write about them.

Scroll through to find out when women in the U.S. and around the world won rights, the names of women who shattered the glass ceiling, and which country's women banded together to end a civil war.

Filed Under: Menstruation products, Michigan Legislature, Michigan State Capitol, women

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