Red is our right!

According to estimates by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Bank, of the 1.8 billion menstruating people in the world, 500 million do not have access to adequate facilities to manage their menstrual hygiene needs. 

In Latin America, the movement in favor of dignified menstruation has led to actions such as the cancellation of taxes on these products. In Mexico, despite the existence of legislation regulating SRHR, menstruation has not been recognized within this package of guarantees, thus rendering invisible a process of health and development, both biological and social. As a consequence of this institutional silencing, we find that menstruation is currently experienced in contexts of poverty, exclusion, marginalization and social differentiation; it is not the same experience between urban areas, with access to public services, and the peripheral rings and rural areas, where water is one of the most relevant problems.

Menstruating is not only a social and public health issue, but also involves economic factors to do it in a dignified way. Scotland mapped that in 2017 alone, more than $30 million was invested to supply menstrual management products. In Mexico, the elimination of VAT on menstrual management products came into effect during 2022. However, this does not guarantee access to them; nor does it make the state responsible for providing menstrual management supplies by guaranteeing access and closing the gaps of menstrual poverty. 

So, how much does it cost a person to menstruate in our country? On average a package of sanitary pads costs 50 pesos, in the hypothetical that the person who uses them will only use one package per month this translates to 600 pesos per year without including medication for pain and inflammation. Considering that a person menstruates for about 45 years, which is equivalent to an investment in sanitary products of more than 24 thousand pesos, not counting that there are families composed of more than one menstruating person, then this amount is unsustainable to pay, because let's remember that 44.4% of women in the country live in poverty. In addition, the costs of menstruation can increase depending on the conditions of each person, either due to menstrual health problems, or due to the conditions that increase their vulnerability thanks to the sum of intersections by class, race, ethnicity, etc. 

In Mexico City there is a precedent in 2021 where the initiative to reform the Education Law of the CDMX was presented, which sought that schools in the city would provide menstrual management products free of charge. Unfortunately, this reform initiative was not successful.

However, legislating in favor of free menstrual management products is not everything; access to these products is only one step in a series of conditions that are necessary to live a dignified menstruation, such as education on the subject, access to information, elimination of social prejudices surrounding menstruation, and of course the guarantee of basic rights such as water.

We our goal is contribute to the recognition of dignified menstruation as part of the Sexual and Reproductive Rights (SRHR) of the youth of Mexico City through research, dissemination, training and advocacy strategies.

 Each strategy is oriented to achieve a specific objective, so particular results will be sought:

1. To develop research on menstrual management based on the experiences of young people in school and non-school spaces in Mexico City. Result: The experiences, knowledge and opinions of young people are recovered and reflected in research on menstrual management in school and non-school spaces in Mexico City. 

2. Develop inputs for dissemination of information on SRHR and dignified menstruation, based on research on menstrual management among young people. Result: youth have access to information on dignified menstruation and SRHR.

3. Generate training and sensitization processes on SRHR and menstrual management for youth through workshops and red tents. Result: Youth recognize that dignified menstruation is part of their SRHR.

4. To make dignified menstruation visible as part of the SRHR by coordinating with organizations that work on SRHR issues, as well as dignified menstruation. Result: Youth recognize that dignified menstruation is part of their SRHR.

In Mexico City, as of 2020, there were 2,117,000 young people between the ages of 15 and 29, of which 1,055,044 were women. The first menstrual cycle tends to occur after the age of 9 and before the age of 15, the same age range in which adolescents and youths are in basic education, however, being in school does not ensure comprehensive and rights-based menstrual education. There are 408,990 women students in high school, 237,731 women in secondary school and 3,773 women with no schooling.

In addition, in the plans and programs for basic education approved by the Ministry of Public Education, menstruation appears for the first time in Block I of Natural Sciences in the fifth year of primary school. The topic that encompasses it is Secondary Sexual Characteristics and the approach given to it is insufficient and superficial.

Speaking of access to menstrual health, only 730,322 women between the ages of 15 and 29 are affiliated with a public health service. And although there are Friendly Health Services for Adolescents from 10 to 19 years of age, they have sometimes been labeled as stigmatizing and unfriendly to adolescents.

Young people do not receive comprehensive menstrual education in educational spaces and there are few places with public, free and accessible information about menstruation. It is difficult for young people who do not attend school to have access to education, health and support on menstruation.

Therefore, integrating and recognizing menstruation as part of Sexual and Reproductive Right can mitigate, to a certain extent, the lack of access to information, support, awareness and participation in the public agenda through the strategies we propose, from research, dissemination, training and advocacy. Our contribution as menstruating youth with experience in the subject and the rapprochement we have achieved with our peers and adolescents, ensures that menstruation is integrated into the package of Sexual and Reproductive Rights (SRHR) from a human rights and youth perspective, leaving aside the adult-centrism that hinders the right of youth to bodily autonomy in their territories and contexts.

Elige has great strengths in advising and providing training processes in SRHR, based on a youth, gender and intercultural perspective. Our target audience ranges from adolescents, youth, public servants, as well as caregivers, however, we prioritize the involvement of adolescent and young women, LGBTTTIQAP+, indigenous and afrodescendant people. 

Our 20 years of experience have included the construction of participatory methodologies to generate accessible information, forming part of a generational exchange, learning and deconstruction based on collective work. These processes include constant training on new tools and perspectives for the guarantee of rights for all. On the other hand, we have always managed our sustainability as an organization, thanks to our transparent and committed management, we have been able to influence multiple realities.

Also, by increasing our skills and digital tools, we migrated our content to the digital space due to the pandemic. Under this context, we managed to impact more than 30 thousand people, training them and raising awareness about their SRHR, feminism, youth activism, among other issues. Therefore, we have experience in face-to-face and virtual training processes, where methodologies are adapted to the topics and spaces.

During 2022 we conducted with the Commission to Prevent and Eradicate Discrimination of Mexico City (COPRED), the diagnosis: "Experiences of Menstrual Management of adolescents and youth in school environments" in public schools, with the participation of more than a thousand adolescents. This research made visible the deficiencies that exist in the educational system to guarantee menstrual rights, as well as a call to the educational authorities to guarantee Comprehensive Sexuality Education.

We have also carried out informative modules on dignified menstruation in public schools in Mexico City, as well as a workshop on menstrual management for adolescents from 10 to 14 years of age from Guerrero, Hidalgo, Puebla, Tlaxcala, State of Mexico and Mexico City in the Regional Forum "Connecting Dreams: Forum of networks with children and adolescents" organized by the National Institute of Women.

We have articulated with collectives to provide information on dignified menstruation in our training process Verano Adolescente 2023, where we approached the topic from the point of view of creativity and accompaniment.

At the regional level, we took part in the picnic "Menstruating in Latin America", a dialogue with organizations from Colombia, Ecuador, Argentina and Mexico, to share experiences, reflections and proposals on the topic and the 2030 Agenda in our territories.

For more than twenty years, we have forged strategic alliances with governmental bodies, who have placed their trust in our work, seeking our services as experts in youth issues, SIA, SRHR, ILE, among others. We have also been recognized by other national and regional organizations/collectives, so we are confident that we can collectively achieve the planned results. Our articulated work with other youth and the feminist movement allows us to be part of different dialogues and actions in order to coordinate actions with other collectives and organizations in favor of dignified menstruation.

Link: https://copred.cdmx.gob.mx/storage/app/media/diagnostico-experiencias-de-gestion-menstrual-de-adolescencias-y-juventudes-en-entornos-escolares.pdf

We are not currently operating this specific project, however, this year our outreach through our workshops and modules has reached more than 4 thousand adolescents. 

We hope to impact at least 10% of the menstruating population in Mexico City through our projects over the course of two years. 

We conducted a study using methodologies that included the participation of adolescents and young people, and we asked them about their main problems related to the exercise of their sexuality and menstrual management. Thanks to this exercise, we discovered that there are very marked deficiencies: 1) Limited educational opportunities on sexual and reproductive rights. 2) Little or no recognition of dignified menstruation as part of SRHR. 3) High rates of discrimination against youth as a result of adult-centered and sexist prejudices. 

Faced with this situation, we created four strategies: 1) Find out, 2) Communicate, 3) Training, and 4) Advocacy. In each strategy the participation of the youth is present, from taking up their experiences, to replicating them for their visibility. The added value of this project is that we are an organization led one hundred percent by young women, and that the target population was previously consulted, but also actively participates in the development of the project with the objective of replicating it in other spaces.

While the objective of the project is to have dignified menstruation recognized as part of SRHR, an indirect result of this exercise is to empower young people to actively participate in the recognition of their rights. The innovative approach that we promote is that at each stage is transversalized to the youth perspective, and therefore at all times of the project young people are involved. In this way the project is sustainable, that is to say, that through the addition of young people this exercise is replicated and expands its scope.

1. Training processes such as workshops, trainings, care modules, conferences.

2. Research and dissemination of information on SRHR.

3. Formation of youth political leadership.

4. Communication campaigns.

Indicators of the activities:

• Number of people reached with the activities.

• Number of training processes with adolescents and youth of the CDMX.

• Number of articles on sexual and reproductive rights of young people.

• Number of publications in social networks

• Number of political communication campaigns 

• Number of political spaces created for youth in the CDMX

• Number of political spaces to which youth have participated.

Intervention products: 

• Workshops, modules, feminist and youth schools, etc.

• Digital and printed inputs on DSyR.

• Spaces for youth political participation.

• Content with narratives from a youth and human rights perspective.

Indicators: 

• Number of workshops held during a year for adolescents and youth in the CDMX.

• Number of annual publications of articles on youth SRHR.

• Number of annual research papers published

• Number of political spaces in which youth have participated during a year. 

Intermediate results: 

• Train and sensitize youth through workshops, trainings, care modules, conferences on SRHR, antifertility methods, abortion.

• Research issues related to SRHR of young people, as well as monitor health services for the dissemination of accurate information.

• Participate/demand to create spaces, public policies, programs in favor of SRHR with a youth perspective to encourage the political participation of young people.

• Contribute to the change of the positive narrative towards youth through the use of discourses with a youth perspective for the mitigation of discrimination towards young people.

Indicators:

• Percentage of young people aged 15-29 years in the CDMX who report accessing sexual and reproductive health information and services.

• Percentage of young people 15-29 years old in the CDMX who actively participate in their community/political spaces. 

• Percentage of young people who accessed health services in CDMX.

Overall impact: 

• Youth fully exercise their SRHR through the development of their bodily and political autonomy. 

Indicator:

• Rate of change of young people who have access to sexual and reproductive health spaces, information and services. After five years of intervention.

If training processes; research; information dissemination; youth leadership training; and communication campaigns in favor of SRHR produce workshops, modules, schools; inputs on SRHR; spaces for youth political participation; and content with narratives from the perspective of youth and human rights, this should lead to youth being sensitized because they have access to accurate information on their SRHR; while at the same time sharing these contents to encourage political participation through the creation of spaces, public policies, programs in favor of SRHR, and the construction of positive narratives that mitigate discrimination against young people; which in the end will improve the conditions that allow the full exercise of SRHR, contributing to the development of the physical and political autonomy of young people.

We are currently 12 young women who collaborate in Elige.

9 full time staff

2 social service providers

1 volunteer

Elige is a feminist youth organization that was created in 1996, thanks to the demand of us young people for spaces that recognize the progressive autonomy of youth. That is why in 1999 we registered with the law, and we became a legally constituted organization. Next June 14th of the following year we will happily celebrate our 25th anniversary! 

But in particular, we have been working on the preparation of the "Red is Ours" project for almost two years.

Elige is a feminist organization that is composed of diverse youth between 20 to 35 years old, our political commitment is to put into practice the youth perspective in all programmatic areas of the organization. For example, through the promotion of the generational relays, because the organization seeks to be a learning platform for the youth. For this reason, we are committed to the youth being the decision-makers and occupying decision-making positions within and outside this space. 

We believe it is very important to take into account the opinions of adolescents and youth, which is why we conduct focus groups, surveys, consultation exercises, etc. to learn about the different problems that affect young people. Knowing their realities gives us an overview of the needs that need to be covered and helps us to formulate strategies to address them. 

All these political positions and commitments to young people are reflected in our organizational documents that guide each of our actions. Such as our Good Practices Manual, our Code of Ethics and Conduct for Staff and Collaborators, and our Protocol for the Safeguarding of persons under 18 years of age.  These include the perspectives that govern the organization, such as feminist, youth and human rights perspectives, as well as the principles to which we adhere, such as the culture of peace, alliance, teamwork, creativity, non-discrimination, accountability, horizontality and collectivity.