Regardless of gender, we are all born thanks to the nurturing of the uterus. However, menstruation is subject to varying degrees of stigma and taboo in many societies. At the first Buddy Buddy Talk event of the successful Be My Buddy Buddy menstrual equality exhibition fully supported by our lead sponsor Hactl, the Oscar-winning documentary “Period. End of Sentence.” was screened. After the screening, Hactl’s Director of Corporate Communications, Winnie Chan, along with Candy from the Shanzhan Gender/Sexuality Concern Group and Amy, Executive Secretary of the Association for the Advancement of Feminism, had a discussion. This gave us the opportunity to care about the situation faced by women and menstruators in schools and workplaces, and to speak out for menstrual equality together.

Menstrual education and the supply of menstrual products are important issues in daily life. Amy and Candy shared an experiment called “Drop Spot: Menstrual Supply Station” that they piloted on the campus of the Chinese University of Hong Kong at the first Buddy Buddy Talk event of the Be My Buddy Buddy menstrual equality exhibition. This provided a place within public spaces for menstrual products so that menstruators do not have to worry about where to get these products. The purpose of this experiment is to allow menstruators to easily obtain menstrual products and deal with menstruation freely on campus. Through this experiment, we can pay attention to the needs of menstruators and provide solutions. 

In many companies and workplaces, menstruation is still a difficult topic to address. Male colleagues often avoid discussing it, and there is even unnecessary prejudice. However, Winnie Chan, Director of Corporate Communications at Hactl, our lead sponsor, mentioned in the first Buddy Buddy Talk of the Be My Buddy Buddy menstrual equality exhibition that they are promoting menstrual equality at the company: placing menstrual products in the company’s restrooms and frontline staff break rooms, benefiting female colleagues while educating all colleagues about menstruation. This solution not only provides convenience for menstruators but also helps more people understand the importance of menstrual equality. Through such solutions, we can encourage more companies to pay attention to the needs of menstruators and provide corresponding support.

The full text of the screening and discussion of “Period. End of Sentence.” （in Chinese) is available at freeperiods.hk.