By: Eden Chipperfield, News Writer
When Zeba Khan came across an online video detailing the obstacles that people who experience periods have to face, she aimed to provide a solution.
The former University of British Columbia student started a club on campus alongside other founding members, Niki Oveisi and Imad Ahmad. Together, they built a team to facilitate the collection and distribution of menstrual products to multiple bridge houses and shelters.
“It made me frustrated to see that something many of us experience as a biological process, that there are not easily accessible ways to manage periods,” said Khan. “Seeing something like [the YouTube video] made me want to do something about period poverty.”
Since the first days of Free Periods Canada, Khan and their team have reached out to shelters and transitional homes, including the Bloom Group, Nisa Homes, and Atira Society, to supply menstrual products for people with periods. “I remember the first time I decided to provide menstrual supplies; I went to Walmart, bought many menstrual products, went to the Bloom Group, and dropped them off. It felt great because it felt like I was doing something tangible and making a difference,” said Khan.
In 2023, Environics Research conducted a study that found one in six Canadians who experience periods have experienced period poverty at some point. Period poverty refers to a lack of access to menstruation products, as well as a lack of education around what menstruation is and how to combat stigma. The study identified that in homes which “earn less than $40,000 a year,” period poverty impacts one in four individuals.
“If you’re making minimum wage, there will be choices you have to make, and sometimes you don’t have enough money to purchase products,” expressed Khan. Khan added that some people “don’t have access to supplies” when they’re unexpected, such as in the middle of writing a test. “People who get periods, they often find themselves without the necessary supplies when they need them — you can’t always be prepared for it,” said Khan.
As of February 2024, the minimum wage is $16.75 an hour. The Canadian Centre of Policy Alternatives found one must make at least $32 an hour to rent a one-bedroom apartment in Vancouver. Money for essentials like menstruation products is often used to make payments for rent, groceries, and other high-demand necessities.
Shelters are not obligated to provide period supplies to their residents, which furthers barriers for unhoused or sheltering individuals trying to access bare essentials. Khan described how United Way, alongside Free Periods Canada, has been able to supply shelters and transitional homes for the last two years. With United Way’s resources, significantly more supplies are being delivered.
Before the first COVID-19 restrictions in 2020, the Free Periods Team was participating in “Map the System.” The competition tasked teams with facilitating research to “understand why menstrual inequity exists in Canada,” build solutions, and facilitate their plans. Through research, Khan and their team discovered a need for a more central space for individuals to gather and share resources for menstruation. An increase in equitable space would encourage further conversations on accessibility, community support, advocacy, and empowerment.
To further their goal of tackling the lack of equitable space, Free Periods Canada began a framework platform called CHARMS (Collaboration Hub, Advocacy for Research and Menstrual Services) to connect with individuals and collaborate on resource collection.
The launch of CHARMS has led to more education around periods. CHARMS’s success accelerated due to the pandemic, as they engaged in research and networking partnerships to encourage more conversations about menstrual supplies and period poverty.
In April 2023, the BC government declared that contraceptive prescriptions would be free in BC pharmacies. In May 2022, United Way BC received a provincial grant from the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction to focus on increasing the accessibility of needed supplies. “Maybe in the future there will be something more permanent that is implemented to address period poverty in British Columbia, but as of right now, we [have] not had any discussions with the government about something more permanent,” said Khan.
Free Periods Canada partnered with Foodbanks Canada to begin the discussion of period supplies across Canada and the initiation of educational workshops. Khan expressed that the workshop’s objective is to create necessary change by educating those who work with youth about period education.
