Briefing paper: assessing the Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Act 2021 as model menstruation legislation

Bettina Bildhauer; Camilla Mork Røstvik; Sharra L Vostral

doi:10.16995/olh.9129

Briefing paper: assessing the Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Act 2021 as model menstruation legislation

Bettina Bildhauer, Camilla Mork Røstvik, Sharra L Vostral

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

This briefing paper discusses how to include historical perspectives to assess the potential success for current and future menstruation legislation. The case of Scotland provides an instructive example of law-making about free period products and period poverty. While commercial products are perceived as a solution, historical research suggests that cultural attitudes, lingering stigma, and regional differences affect opportunities for passing laws. To predict the likelihood that proposed menstrual product legislation might be adopted in other locations, historical factors related to attitudes about menstruation, including stigma, must be considered and understood to effect lasting change.

Original language	English
Article number	9129
Number of pages	13
Journal	Open Library of Humanities
Volume	8
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.16995/olh.9129
Publication status	Published - 22 Aug 2022

Keywords

Menstruation
Menstrual products
Policy
Legislation
Scotland

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10.16995/olh.9129Licence: CC BY

Bildhauer_2022_OLH_Briefing-paper_CC
Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC-BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Final published version, 411 KBLicence: CC BY

Ending Period Poverty in Scotland: Ending Period Poverty in Scotland: A Historical and International Perspective
Bildhauer, B. (PI)
The Royal Society of Edinburgh
1/01/20 → 31/12/22
Project: Standard

Cite this

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title = "Briefing paper: assessing the Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Act 2021 as model menstruation legislation",

abstract = "This briefing paper discusses how to include historical perspectives to assess the potential success for current and future menstruation legislation. The case of Scotland provides an instructive example of law-making about free period products and period poverty. While commercial products are perceived as a solution, historical research suggests that cultural attitudes, lingering stigma, and regional differences affect opportunities for passing laws. To predict the likelihood that proposed menstrual product legislation might be adopted in other locations, historical factors related to attitudes about menstruation, including stigma, must be considered and understood to effect lasting change.",

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KW - Legislation

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Briefing paper: assessing the Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Act 2021 as model menstruation legislation

Abstract

Keywords

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Projects

Ending Period Poverty in Scotland: Ending Period Poverty in Scotland: A Historical and International Perspective

Cite this