Period Parity

In case you missed it, Scotland has become the first country in the world to make period products — i.e., tampons, pads — free to all who need them. In the U.S., the Tampon Tax Protest is focusing on the thirty that still tax period products — essentially, a tax on women.  For more information, check out this interactive map which reveals, for example, that Michigan taxes tampons but doughnuts are untaxed, and that South Carolina has a tax on tampons, but amusement park rides are untaxed. The human rights issues with this are apparent, but for a scholarly examination of the issue, check out Professor Bridget Crawford’s work here and here.