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Menstruation.
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A simple word describing
a natural biological process,
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weighed down by centuries of stigma,
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has been transformed into something
most of us can only speak about
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in whispers.
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But why?
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As I speak to you right now,
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more than 800 million women
around the world
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are having a period.
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None of us would exist without it,
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and yet it remains an "embarrassing"
subject to broach.
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From my experience and that
of the women around me,
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I can tell you that it's exhausting.
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It's exhausting to carefully take out
a brown paper bag hiding a pad,
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stuffing it into your pocket
in the middle of a class
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and rushing to the washroom
as discreetly as possible.
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It's exhausting to sit
through lessons and meetings
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pretending to be absolutely normal,
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while internally crying out
from intense period cramps.
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It's exhausting to be dismissively told
that you’re PMSing
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or suffering from
"that time of the month,"
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and it's exhausting to continuously
fight back against age-old traditions
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that ask you not to pray,
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visit temples, cook, touch pickle,
and the list goes on and on,
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while you're just trying to bleed
and be left in peace.
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(Laughter)
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But you know what the worst part is?
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The worst part is that the things
that seem tiring to us
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are merely the tip of the iceberg,
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because we in this room
are privileged enough
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to be able to afford
sanitary napkins every month,
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to be able to visit a gynecologist
in case of any problem
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to be able to tell what's normal
and abnormal with our monthly cycle.
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We have access to water,
sanitation and toilets
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that help us maintain
our privacy and hygiene.
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But what about those who don't?
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What about 335 million girls
around the world
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who go to school without even having
access to water and soap
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to wash their hands?
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What about 15-year-old
schoolgirls in Kenya
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who have to sell their bodies
to be able to buy sanitary napkins?
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What about two-thirds
of rural high school girls in India
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who don't even understand
what their bodies are going through
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at menarche?
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And right now, we are all
gathered here in the USA.
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So what about 64 percent of women
in St. Louis, Missouri,
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who weren't able to afford
menstrual hygiene supplies
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in the previous year?
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What about the struggles
of homeless, transgender,
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intersex and displaced people
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who menstruate?
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What about them?
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The scale of the problem,
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stemming in part from the deep-rooted
stigma attached to menstruation,
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is unimaginable.
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And the desire to voice this frustration
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led me, along with three other teammates,
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to initiate a campaign
that calls for change,
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questions the taboos
surrounding menstruation
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and spreads period positivity.
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The name of our campaign, "Pravahkriti,"
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was born from the message
that we want to convey to the world.
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"Pravah" means "flow,"
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and "kriti" means "a beautiful creation."
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Because how could the monthly cycle
that ultimately gives rise to all creation
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be anything less than beautiful?
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Now, as a social issue,
menstruation has several facets to it
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that overlap, reinforce
and worsen the situation.
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So we based our campaign
on four fundamental pillars:
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health, hygiene, awareness
and spreading positivity.
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But how did we actually implement this?
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Well, we started within the walls
of our school classroom.
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Instead of simply explaining
menstruation to children
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from a textbook or biological standpoint,
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we adopted an innovative approach.
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We conducted an activity where students
strung together a bracelet
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consisting of 28 beads signifying
the length of the menstrual cycle,
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out of which four to seven beads
were of a different color,
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demonstrating the days a woman bleeds.
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And in this way, we not only
explained what periods are
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in a manner that was educational,
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but also approachable and engaging.
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To offer another example,
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we explored various ways
of alleviating cramps,
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including preparing some
natural remedies in school itself.
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And we didn't just stop
at involving girls in our campaign.
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In fact, boys were equally involved,
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and one of our co-team members,
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as you saw,
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is also a boy.
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Through internal conversations
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where girls could freely share
their personal experiences
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and boys could just ask questions,
no matter how dumb they might seem,
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our male volunteers quickly
got over their awkwardness,
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not just supporting but also leading
educational sessions.
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Clearly, starting
an inclusive conversation
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including members of all genders
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and listening to
and supporting each other
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can go a long way.
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Now, to make our campaign successful,
we conducted extensive research,
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interviewed gynecologists,
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surveyed people to gauge
public opinion on periods
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and conducted a panel discussion
with professionals working in this field.
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And then we undertook the journey
to create change.
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We organized a stall
at Shilpotsav, a local fair,
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where we distributed
sanitary napkin-shaped envelopes
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and bookmarks containing
period-positive messages.
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We donated hundreds of pads
that we had collected
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through a pad donation drive at school.
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Interacting with young girls
in government and charitable schools,
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we explained periods to them
through a game of hopscotch
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and distributed period kits
that we had made ourselves
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that consisted of a pad
and other items like a paper soap
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and sanitizer for maintaining hygiene,
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a piece of dark chocolate
just to lift their mood,
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a sachet of ginger tea, and so on.
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In whatever we did, we strived to think
beyond the norm and break barriers,
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be it by creating
a physical period tracker
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to help girls without access
to the internet
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to record their monthly cycle,
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or sensitizing the masses
by performing street plays,
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or even developing a video game
called "Crimson Crusade" --
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(Laughter)
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that introduces both boys and girls
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to problems faced
by menstruating women globally
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and players progress in the game
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by defeating menstrual monsters.
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(Laughter)
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To sustain this effort,
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we've installed 10 sanitary napkin
dispensers in several schools.
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Gradually, people's mindsets are changing.
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But does change come so easily?
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At a school for the underprivileged,
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we encountered a girl who had just
got her first period
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but wasn't wearing anything
to absorb the flow.
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Imagine being her,
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sitting in class feeling
embarrassed and uncomfortable,
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looking down and seeing red,
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asking your parents for help,
asking what was going on with you
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and being dismissed.
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Imagine the shame, fear and embarrassment
for being "caught" doing something wrong
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that forces you into living
in ignorance and silence
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at the cost of your health and dignity.
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While we do our part,
our endeavors will only be successful
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if each one of you internalizes
and spreads onward
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the idea that menstruation
is completely normal,
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if each one of you conveys this message
to every person you know.
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When we can discuss digestion,
blood circulation and respiration --
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all natural biological processes --
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why should menstruation be off-limits?
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And you, too, can help make it less taboo,
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simply by being more open
with male friends and family members,
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supporting local
and international organizations
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working to improve menstrual
hygiene management,
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making menstrual bracelets
with middle school kids in your area
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or even by playing Crimson Crusade
with your friends.
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Every small steps counts, because
brushing this topic under the carpet
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perpetuates lack of access
to sanitary absorbents,
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ignorance of menstrual health issues,
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school absenteeism, infection,
and so much more.
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I'd like to end with a few lines
a volunteer wrote for us.
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"Let the crimson tide turn.
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Let there be waves of positivity,
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thundering applause,
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villages full of women
who bleed with pride.
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Let there be a scent of education
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drifting through the oxygen
inhaled by men, women and children.
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Let all know the marvels of menstruation
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and celebrate Pravahkriti.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)