In the UK, there seems to be a slow but growing acceptance of periods, or at least more open discussion of the fact that they exist. Not so in India. Not only are periods a taboo topic, but women’s monthly visitor means that their movement in and out of public places is strictly controlled. I hope that your reaction to this is to be appalled and shocked, as I was when I learnt more about the issue. After all, this is the 21st century. But ingeniously, young Indian women have utilised the 21st century phenomenon of social media to protest against this. On Facebook, several photographs have started to appear of women holding postcards – some made up of sanitary towels and tampons – with the slogan “Happy To Bleed”.
This campaign forms a backlash against a statement recently made by an Indian temple chief. As BBC news reports, he stated that “he would allow women to enter the shrine only after a machine was invented to detect if they were ‘pure’.” In other words, they are to be allowed in only when they are not menstruating. Not only does this comment seem ridiculous, but technologically naïve. How can a machine be invented that is able to determine whether women are on their period? It’s not like an airport, where censors can pick up metal rings or jewellery without infringing on personal privacy. Furthermore, the idea of a formal test of purity for each woman reinforces the idea that to be on your period is to be in a period of shame each month; it is something that needs to be caught out by a machine.
(Photo Credit: BBC)
It is not only the concept of denying half of the religious community the right to find peace in their place of worship that is nonsensical. It is also the foundation of the rule itself which is misguided. Menstruation is mistakenly considered impure in Hinduism due to confusion over ancient traditions; admittedly, women did not enter the temple when they were bleeding. To the present day, people have deduced from this that the rule was enforced due to fears of feminine impurity. Wrong, wrong wrong. The rule controlling women’s mobility was, believe it or not, a compassionate rule, a tradition designed to allow women to rest when they had menstrual cramps and were in significant pain. It’s the modern equivalent of being given a hot water bottle and a chocolate bar by your friends in the modern day, I guess. Given that the rule’s foundations have been proved invalid, it is gratifying to see young women stand up for their rights, and to stand up for their periods.
Indian women are sharing selfies and messages with the hashtag #HappyToBleed to counter menstrual taboos; the campaign was started by a brave 20 year old called Nikita Azad. As the BBC news reports, she posted a message to Facebook how she “started a campaign, #HappyToBleed, as a form of resistance against patriarchal beliefs about menstruation, and chauvinist notions that consider women the property of men, or society.” It is heartening to see the number of responses from women across India, via social media, supporting the cause. Let’s hope the campaign will be strong enough to enact some form of change, or at least raise awareness, of this archaic absurdity. Certainly the passion and anger of many Indian women suggests they have the strength and determination to carry on protesting.
I leave you with the inspiring tweet from the founder and editor-in-chief of Feminism in India: “My vagina bleeds which is ironically why you accept me as a ‘woman’, else I’d have been dismissed as barren. So shut the f*** up about impurity, this blood is the reason why you’re alive.”
(Photo credit: Facebook/FeminisminIndia)