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A small blue, purple, and yellow structure sits outside the office of Mamatoto Village, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit working to improve Black maternal health outcomes in the 7th Ward, a majority-Black community that struggles with poverty and violence.
The little library-style pantry, the first of its kind, offers free reproductive health care products — a mix of tampons, body wipes, pads, condoms, lubricants, and condom instructions — to anyone who wants them.
Called a period-product pantry, it is a small step in breaking the cycle of what’s known as period poverty. Mamatoto Village, supports women through their perinatal and postpartum journey, says Mariah Barnette, Mamatoto’s director of communications and development, says the team created the pantry when they noticed a persistent lack of reproductive health care resources for Black residents in the area. It was a big hit right off the bat.
“We launched right before Thanksgiving break,” she says. “Half of our menstrual kits were taken and 80% of our safe sex kits were taken. To me, that’s already a great sign.”
According to the Alliance for Period Supplies, two in five people who menstruate struggle to purchase period supplies due to lack of income — this is called period poverty. In a 2021 study by U by Kotex uncovered how period poverty disproportionately affects Black and Latina menstruating people.
Jennifer Gaines, the national engagement manager of Alliance for Period Supplies, told Word In Black in a previous interview she’s noticed period poverty often intersects with the inability to afford basics like food or housing.
“Folks experiencing period poverty are most likely food-insecure and some folks are homeless and unable to participate in daily life,” she said. “Unfortunately, disproportionately Black and Latina (people) are experiencing period poverty at higher levels than their counterparts.”
Polls show more than 76% of Americans agree that menstrual supplies like pads and tampons, should be as free and accessible as toilet paper or paper towels in public restrooms at schools and universities. The overwhelming majority holds up even when broken down by demographic; 83% of females and nearly 70% of males support the policy.
How Diaper and Period Poverty Intersect
In a recent media briefing by the Urban Institute, politicians, advocates, and researchers spoke about how period product insecurity and diaper product insecurity hamper vulnerable communities.
Megan Smith, chief of innovation and impact at the National Diaper Bank Network, said studies show the lack of diapers is directly related to maternal depression among new mothers, while period-product insecurity is tied to poor adolescent mental health.
Both diaper and period-product access affect women, birthing and menstruating people in a variety of ways. Within the last year, 9 of 10 of households who did not have enough diapers on hand struggled to afford phone or internet bills. And more than half of people who experience period product insecurity used makeshift, unsanitary substitutes — wads of paper, paper towels, or cloth — to manage their menstrual flow.
Sen. Tammy Duckworth, an Illinois Democrat, said at the Urban Institute briefing she grew up food-insecure in high school, but there were no food banks nearby. After working with food banks as a politician, she learned that many families face diaper insecurity.
“It was astonishing to me that period products and diapers … was more in demand than protein in food pantries,” she said.
Research has established that people who are menstruating but lack access to period products are more likely to cancel important appointments, miss school or work, and avoid seeing others. Duckworth said the issue affects the nation’s economic viability and competitiveness on a global scale.
“If you can’t go to work, you’re losing that productivity of that worker,” she said. “It’s also a financial burden on the country because of the health care costs. Lack of adequate diapers and period products are linked to people having issues with UTIs and skin breakdowns which adds to medical costs. So, this is an issue for all of us. We as taxpayers should care deeply about this.”
House Rep. Rosa DeLauro, a Connecticut Democrat, said families are left to make impossible choices, deciding between purchase diapers and period products or other necessities like food or rent.
According to the National Diaper Bank Network, parents and caregivers who receive free diapers reported their children needed 71% fewer pediatrician or doctor visits to treat diaper dermatitis.
Solutions Are Within the Community
Policies like the Child Tax Credit give families more discretionary income to help them handle rising costs, DeLauro said. Her pro-family agenda, she said, centers on the American Family Act, legislation that would expand and improve the Child Tax Credit, a popular program that was part of the American Rescue Plan.
“People don’t pay their bills once a year, they pay them once a month,” she said. “This expansion was enormously successful. It reached more than 90% of families.”
Andrea Luquetta, economic justice policy and program consultant at Pa’lante Collaborative Strategies, said as an advocate she has learned communities, not bureaucrats, have clear ideas of what they need and what the solutions are.
“The best creativity and the most efficient and effective answers always come from the people who are experiencing the challenges themselves,” she said.
Now marking more than 11 years since Mamatoto Village started, Barnette says they are committed to providing services like doula care, childbirth education, lactation support, and perinatal mental health care. Part of that mission, she says, is making sure Black women in Ward 7 never go without menstruating products and access to safe sex kits.
The pantry is 100% donation based, but Barnett says they are looking for sponsors and brand partnerships in the new year. The organization is hopeful they can expand the period products offered to include diva cups or panty liners.
“This initiative goes beyond just distribution of those products,” she says, “it really helps break cycles of poverty and promote self-efficiency through education and advocacy.”
