One in 10 college students say they struggle to afford menstrual products each month, with 14.2% saying they've experienced that difficulty over the course of the past year. That鈥檚 according to a study published in the medical journal earlier this year.
On Aug. 5, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker took action to address that problem, signing three new bills that aim to address period poverty. One of them, , took effect immediately. It requires state universities and community colleges to provide free menstrual hygiene products in campus restrooms.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville has been doing that for years, thanks to the . Christy Ferguson, an instructor of English and women鈥檚 studies at SIUE, started the initiative in 2018 after having a hysterectomy and wanting to donate unneeded menstrual products to someone who could use them.
Her modest effort to share her leftovers led to a thriving venture that has provided pads and tampons around campus at no cost to students. Mensi Project鈥檚 supplies are packaged in bags Ferguson makes by hand.
鈥淚'm an artist and a 鈥榗raftivist.鈥� So I tend to bring my art into anything that I'm doing activism-wise,鈥� Ferguson explained on Friday鈥檚 St. Louis on the Air. 鈥淪o I just started making the bags and putting them all over the place.鈥�
To date, the organization has relied on volunteer work and donations. Pritzker鈥檚 bill, which he signed on campus last month, changes that.
Ferguson said she plans to continue addressing period poverty on campus. These days, that also involves stocking menstrual hygiene in men鈥檚 bathrooms.
鈥淚t's just necessary for us to realize that this is not [just] a women's issue 鈥� it's a human issue,鈥� Ferguson said. She posted new Mensi Project flyers this week that reflect the project's stance on the matter: "Humans menstruate. Genders do not."
鈥淚f we don't [provide] access to our trans students as well, then we're not doing our due diligence to take care of the entire community on campus,鈥� she said.
鈥�鈥� brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is hosted by and produced by , , and . The audio engineer is .
