Our System is Failing to Care About Those Who Menstruate - The Pink Tax Makes it Even Worse

Half of the people on Earth are women who menstruate, but somehow taxes are still in place to take advantage of the need. The Pink Tax isn’t actually a tax, it is an upcharge on items marketed towards women and girls. Items like razors, skincare products, clothing, haircare, vitamins, and other daily items are subject to the Pink Tax. In some cases, women can pay up to 50% more for a product that is practically the same as the male alternative. Jennifer Weiss-Wolf, a lawyer and vice president at the Brennan School of Justice at NYU School of Law, is the co-founder of Period Equity, a non-profit organization dedicated to having menstrual justice. Weiss-Wolf describes the Pink Tax as an “income-generating scenario for private companies who found a way to make their product look either more directed to or more appropriate for the population and saw that as a moneymaker.” In other words, the Pink Tax is a way for companies to make more money by exploiting women and girls. In a study by NYU, it was found that in New York City women pay 13% more for products than men do. The study took 150 different brands that were sold in New York City and analyzed the price difference between products marketed towards women and products marketed towards men.

The Tampon Tax is very similar to the Pink Tax but is a sales tax specific to pads, tampons, and other menstrual products. 27 states still have taxes on period products. In Indiana, there is a tax on tampons and other menstrual products but not on barbeque sunflower seeds.Similarly, in Wisconsin, there is a tax on tampons but gun club memberships are tax free. To note--three out of the four senators for these states are men. These discrepancies show how the states take advantage of the need for menstrual products when a person has their period. Politicians are in great control of the taxes that are in place in their state and the fact that they aren’t taking any action to end period poverty shows their priorities and it enforces the stigma that periods are dirty and something to be ashamed of. Politicians are making guns more of a priority than protecting their own citizens from choosing between buying hygiene and period products and buying food or paying their rent that much.

In her research, Weiss-Wolf has found the root of the problem in regards to pink taxes in the United States. She says “The most realistic scenario is that most of our legislators don’t menstruate, so they weren’t really thinking about it in any sort of constructive way.” Male senators and men in general dismiss bills related to the Pink Tax, because they have never experienced a period themselves. They don’t see it as a worthwhile issue.

Ultimately, these taxes are especially harmful for people in poverty. When lacking funds, basic needs like food, razors, menstrual products become even more expensive. These taxes add up over time and are estimated to be an extra 150 million dollars spent on menstrual products in the US this year. Period Equity is just one of many organizations dedicated to solving this issue. We can help to rectify this problem by educating ourselves and others. Making period products tax free is the most important way we can show the world that we care about people who menstruate and the essential need for period products.