Overview

Explores the burgeoning menstrual advocacy movement and analyzes how law should evolve to take menstruation into account. Approximately half the population menstruates for a large portion of their lives, but the law is mostly silent about the topic. Until recently, most people would have said that periods are private matters not to be discussed in public. But the last few years have seen a new willingness among advocates and allies of all ages to speak openly about periods. Slowly around the globe, people are recognizing the basic fundamental human right to address menstruation in a safe and affordable way, free of stigma, shame, or barriers to access. Menstruation Matters explores the role of law in this movement. It asks what the law currently says about menstruation (spoiler alert: not much) and provides a roadmap for legal reform that can move society closer to a world where no one is held back or disadvantaged by menstruation. Bridget J. Crawford and Emily Gold Waldman examine these issues in a wide range of contexts, from schools to workplaces to prisons to tax policies and more. Ultimately, they seek to transform both law and society so that menstruation is no longer an obstacle to full participation in all aspects of public and private life.

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9781479809677

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Reviews

Menstruation Matters is a must-read for anyone who wants to live in a world where everyone can manage their period with dignity. We still have a long way to go to eradicate stigma and menstrual inequality, however, as the Member of the Scottish Parliament who introduced the bill to make menstrual products available to all who need them in Scotland, I know that progress is possible. Momentum is with the changemakers within the menstrual equality movement. Menstruation Matters contains thoughtful suggestions for lawmakers and advocates worldwide to consider. It's a welcome addition to the literature for those who don't want to find themselves on the wrong side of history. --Monica Lennon, Member of the Scottish Parliament and Sponsor of the Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Act Menstruation Matters is insightful and thought provoking. It addresses period poverty and menstrual equity from a legal standpoint tampered with policy, practice and lived experiences, making it refreshing. Menstruation is having its moment and Menstruation Matters is part of that moment. The addition it makes to the body of knowledge is immense. I highly recommend it to everyone. --Neville Okwaro, The National WASH Hub, Ministry of Health, Kenya Access to period products is not a privilege, it is a right. It means women, girls and people who menstruate having access to basic activities, capacity to take part in work and in community. Menstruation Matters is a brilliant resource and addition to a conversation we need to have - because ultimately all women and girls, and people who menstruate are entitled to respect, dignity and bodily autonomy, and a belief in the integrity of their bodies. It's why, at the City of Melbourne local government, I put forward an Australian first motion to make menstrual products available for free in select council facilities. It's time to end the shame - because menstruation matters. --Jamal Hakim, Councillor at the City of Melbourne I'm immensely proud of the world-leading work in Scotland to make free period products available for women. I believe that being able to access period products is fundamental to equality and dignity and I hope our historic Period Products Act, along with other action highlighted in this book, will inspire legislators everywhere to ensure period dignity within their societies. --Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister for Scotland, MSP If the question is, 'Are You There, Law? It's Me, Menstruation, ' this book provides much needed answers. --Judy Blume, author of Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret Menstrual equity is one of the most important issues of our time and one I've long been passionate about. I'm thrilled Menstruation Matters takes a serious look at the gender discrimination that the 'tampon tax ' has on women and sheds light on how we can make the lives of menstruating people better through public policy. --Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney Menstruation is an issue of basic human rights and equality. Menstruation is not a reason to deny anyone the right to participate in education, religious worship, politics, or family life. This book brings new insight to a discussion of a topic that has too long been treated as the source of stigma and shame, when menstruation is a reality for half the world's population. --Indira Jaisring, former Additional Solicitor General of India and attorney for the plaintiffs in Indian Young Lawyers Association v. Kerala Periods have become a vital matter of law and policy, in the U.S. and around the globe. Menstruation Matters deftly melds scholarship and jurisprudence with on-the-ground advocacy - providing a vital resource for the next generation of feminist legal leaders. --Jennifer Weiss-Wolf, author of Periods Gone Public: Taking a Stand for Menstrual Equity This book is a brilliant exploration of what can happen when the realities of the body are placed at the center of legal reasoning. Menstruation Matters, Bridget Crawford and Emily Waldman show how the law can be used to reconceptualize the state's responsibility to ensure that all people have the resources they need to address the involuntary process of menstruation and our shared humanity. --Martha Alberton Fineman, Robert W. Woodruff Professor, Emory University School of Law We talk and think so much about gender and inequality as it applies to work, education, healthcare, and social justice. But a throughline that is consistently ignored or dismissed across each of these areas of the law is menstruation. With Menstruation Matters, Bridget Crawford and Emily Waldman trace the legal and policy implications of an issue that you may not register as a marker of inequality, yet impacts every single aspect of a woman, girl, and transgender American's life. This is a long overdue assessment of the ways in which matters lawyers often choose to avoid, elide, and whisper about, can actually matter in profound ways. --Dahlia Lithwick Senior Legal Correspondent, Slate

If the question is, 'Are You There, Law? It's Me, Menstruation,' this book provides much needed answers. -- Judy Blume, author of Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret I'm immensely proud of the world-leading work in Scotland to make free period products available for women. I believe that being able to access period products is fundamental to equality and dignity and I hope our historic Period Products Act, along with other action highlighted in this book, will inspire legislators everywhere to ensure period dignity within their societies. -- Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister for Scotland, MSP Menstrual equity is one of the most important issues of our time and one I've long been passionate about. I'm thrilled Menstruation Matters takes a serious look at the gender discrimination that the 'tampon tax ' has on women and sheds light on how we can make the lives of menstruating people better through public policy. -- Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney Menstruation Matters is a must-read for anyone who wants to live in a world where everyone can manage their period with dignity. We still have a long way to go to eradicate stigma and menstrual inequality, however, as the Member of the Scottish Parliament who introduced the bill to make menstrual products available to all who need them in Scotland, I know that progress is possible. Momentum is with the changemakers within the menstrual equality movement. Menstruation Matters contains thoughtful suggestions for lawmakers and advocates worldwide to consider. It's a welcome addition to the literature for those who don't want to find themselves on the wrong side of history. -- Monica Lennon, Member of the Scottish Parliament and Sponsor of the Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Act We talk and think so much about gender and inequality as it applies to work, education, healthcare, and social justice. But a throughline that is consistently ignored or dismissed across each of these areas of the law is menstruation. With Menstruation Matters, Bridget Crawford and Emily Waldman trace the legal and policy implications of an issue that you may not register as a marker of inequality, yet impacts every single aspect of a woman, girl, and transgender American's life. This is a long overdue assessment of the ways in which matters lawyers often choose to avoid, elide, and whisper about, can actually matter in profound ways. -- Dahlia Lithwick, Senior Legal Correspondent, Slate This book is a brilliant exploration of what can happen when the realities of the body are placed at the center of legal reasoning. Menstruation Matters, Bridget Crawford and Emily Waldman show how the law can be used to reconceptualize the state's responsibility to ensure that all people have the resources they need to address the involuntary process of menstruation and our shared humanity. -- Martha Alberton Fineman, Robert W. Woodruff Professor, Emory University School of Law Access to period products is not a privilege, it is a right. It means women, girls and people who menstruate having access to basic activities, capacity to take part in work and in community. Menstruation Matters is a brilliant resource and addition to a conversation we need to have - because ultimately all women and girls, and people who menstruate are entitled to respect, dignity and bodily autonomy, and a belief in the integrity of their bodies. It's why, at the City of Melbourne local government, I put forward an Australian first motion to make menstrual products available for free in select council facilities. It's time to end the shame - because menstruation matters. -- Jamal Hakim, Councillor at the City of Melbourne Menstruation is an issue of basic human rights and equality. Menstruation is not a reason to deny anyone the right to participate in education, religious worship, politics, or family life. This book brings new insight to a discussion of a topic that has too long been treated as the source of stigma and shame, when menstruation is a reality for half the world's population. -- Indira Jaisring, former Additional Solicitor General of India and attorney for the plaintiffs in Indian Young Lawyers Association v. Kerala Periods have become a vital matter of law and policy, in the U.S. and around the globe. Menstruation Matters deftly melds scholarship and jurisprudence with on-the-ground advocacy - providing a vital resource for the next generation of feminist legal leaders. -- Jennifer Weiss-Wolf, author of Periods Gone Public: Taking a Stand for Menstrual Equity Menstruation Matters is insightful and thought provoking. It addresses period poverty and menstrual equity from a legal standpoint tampered with policy, practice and lived experiences, making it refreshing. Menstruation is having its moment and Menstruation Matters is part of that moment. The addition it makes to the body of knowledge is immense. I highly recommend it to everyone. -- Neville Okwaro, The National WASH Hub, Ministry of Health, Kenya

Author Information

Bridget J. Crawford (Author) Bridget J. Crawford is University Distinguished Professor at Pace University School of Law and the co-editor of Feminist Judgements: Rewritten Opinions of the United States Supreme Court (CUP, 2016), Feminist Judgements: Rewritten Tax Opinions (CUP 2017), and is the co-author of Menstruation Matters (forthcoming, NYU). Emily Gold Waldman (Author) Emily Gold Waldman is Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Operations and Professor of Law at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University.

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