As adults, it can be easy to forget the visceral feeling of getting your period for the first time. But when the subject comes up, it can bring us right back to those memories. It's something that Saara Siddiqi knows all too well, as a program manager at St. Stephen's house with decades of experience talking to young people about periods. "There's so much to unpack, when you're speaking to young people about periods," she says. "It's not something t...

Black Lives Matter. We believe that health equity is a shared responsibility, and that it will take a collective effort of support, cooperation and active participation to create real, sustainable change. The Period Purse stands with activists here in Toronto and beyond who are fighting against anti-Black racism and violence. We condemn anti-Black racism and anti-Black police violence and add our voices against systemic racism and oppression. Black Lives Matter. As a Toronto-based chari...

At the Period Purse, we work to destigmatize menstruation and address period poverty. And part of that work is changing the conversation. We understand the weight that words carry. It's why we're constantly evaluating the language we use to discuss periods, and the people who experience them. Earlier this month on Twitter, author J.K. Rowling questioned the phrase "people who menstruate." Her statements set off a very public debate on the topic of gender, language and ...

Toronto city councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam and friends marking Menstrual Hygiene Day 2019 on Instagram. If you live in Toronto, you know that progressive city councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam has long been a supporter of menstrual equity. Last spring, she successfully campaigned to increase Toronto's shelter budget to include menstrual products in shelters and drop-ins across Toronto. She is keenly aware of the difficulty of trying to afford expensive period products while living in pov...

As we enter our second month of wide-spread physical distancing, our marginalized community members continue to battle the threat of Covid-19. Across Canada, our most vulnerable are struggling to access groceries and essential supplies, are without stable housing or living in an unsafe home, or are staying in shelters where physical distancing can be next to impossible. Yet in these difficult times, our community organizations continue to go above and beyond to support their staff and clien...