Newcastle students vote to place sanitary bins in male toilets
A groundbreaking move at Newcastle University will allow transgender and non-binary people who have periods to use sanitary bins when they are on campus.
The measure, which has been voted in unanimously by Newcastle University Student’s Union, will make sanitary bins available in men’s toilets.
The bins, which will be introduced across the Union so that non-binary and trans students can choose the toilet they feel “comfortable” with when they are on their period, reported The Chronicle.
NUSU LGBT Officer Hannah Fitzpatrick introducing the motion (NUSU/Twitter)
Newcastle University Student’s Union’s LGBT officer Hannah Fitzpatrick, introduced the idea in December 2017.
After receiving a backlash in several tabloids, Fitzpatrick said she was proud to introduce the measure, but “baffled” as to why it had hit the headlines.
“On one side it is for students who identify with a range of genders,” NUSU student President Ronnie Reid told The Chronicle.
Sanitary towel illustration (Pixabay)
“On the other it is also for students who may have a medical condition so the bins are not just for menstrual care products.”
The union hopes that the main university will follow and introduce bins in male bathrooms.
“We will discuss the Students’ Union motion for menstrual care bins in all washrooms,” said a university spokesperson to The Chronicle.
Newcastle University Student’s Union (NUSU/Wikimedia Commons)
“There are a number of gender-neutral accessible toilets around campus, and care bins are provided within gender-neutral and single toilet units.”
Transgender men and non-binary people are frustratingly forgotten as people who can also have periods.
In a bid to tackle the little-discussed topic, a transgender man made history by fronting a campaign about being a man who menstruates.
(Pink Parcel)
“During my transition, I did have to deal with experiencing periods each month and many of the negative stereotypes that can come along with it,” he told PinkNews.
“Assuming periods are inhibiting to people tends to perpetuate period shame even more, and makes people even more reluctant to talk about them.
“I always found the fact that no-one seemed to openly talk about periods quite difficult,” he said, adding that it “made me want to hide mine even more.”
One in three Brits believe that periods are still a taboo subject, according to a poll released by Pink Parcel.
