These Lancaster students are dishing out free tampons in toilets around campus
Share This Article:
Tampon Talk Lancaster are the students looking to provide free tampons in public toilets in campus and across the city centre.
The group is aimed at addressing the so-called “pink tax” and how this pricing discrepancy affects women.
Focussing on Lancaster town centre and university campus, they´ve launched a petition calling for the provision of free tampons in gender neutral toilets “so that they can be accessed where and when they are needed, with no embarrassment”.
In their website they draw attention to an often-forgotten plight – that of homeless women who are often forced to choose between buying sanitary products and food.
Lancaster University Students Union already provides free tampons at their front desk, but the group say that many students are too embarrassed to ask for them, especially in an emergency.
Tampon Talk met with David Whitlock, LUSU Vice President for Welfare and Community, to discuss the campaign, and explained that they hope to make the university provide sanitary products in on-campus toilets, and are pushing for Lancaster City Council to do the same around the city centre.
In the meantime, however, they are looking to collect and distribute themselves, and will soon be looking for donations.
COMING SOON #FREETHETAMPON #CAMPAIGNDAY #FREETAMPONS4LANCSUK @LancasterUni pic.twitter.com/OWQ6PV2HFw
— #FreeTampons4Lancs (@TamponTalkLancs) February 16, 2017
Whitlock said that if they can show support from the student body the group has a good chance of success.
For more information, visit the Tampon Talk website, or follow them on Facebook or Twitter.
You can sign the petition here.
Lead image by The Period Blog.