On World Menstrual Health Day, sustainable period pants brand WUKA is dismantling beauty standards and period shame by reimagining iconic underwear campaigns with diversity at the heart.
The campaign draws attention to different menstruation experiences and aims to normalise talking about periods by amplifying the voices and stories of unfiltered, unairbrushed women.
From Tracy Beaker star, Dani Harmer, our very own columnist and disability campaigner Samantha Renke, plus-size fashion influencer Sophie Edwards, and former Storm model and endometriosis campaigner Emma Whittaker, WUKA has partnered with a wide range of individuals to promote their positive message for World Menstrual Health Day.
Periods, although natural, are often loaded with so many emotions, and one in four women in the UK report having been ‘period shamed’ at some point in their lives.* WUKA is proud to be inclusive, aiming to help everybody who menstruates have access to affordable, comfortable, sustainable period wear that works.
Samantha Renke, presenter and disability activist, says: “When I think about the word period, I think about the many times as a disabled woman that I’ve been infantilised. I didn’t even think I was capable of having a period. When I was younger, no-one would talk to me about sex, about periods, about puberty – it was a really taboo subject. Even now, aged 35, I am still not expected to be a sexual being. As a disabled woman we are othered, we are seen as ‘lesser than’, and that includes having something as natural as a period.”
Samantha Renke, presenter and disability activist wears WUKA EVERYDAY™ BRALETTE and WUKA ULTIMATE™ MIDI BRIEF
Actress Dani Harmer recalls being at a cheerleading competition the first time she came on her period, and having zero idea of what to do. Dani felt ashamed, embarrassed and nervous, so she didn’t tell anyone. Dani says, “I don’t want anyone to ever feel like that – I should’ve been concentrating on my cheerleading performance and enjoying my time with my friends, but instead I felt like every single person was just staring at me.”
Dani, who has a daughter herself, recalls using a handful of toilet paper to use as a makeshift pad when experiencing her first period. Research by WUKA found that almost half (42 per cent) of people who menstruate have had to substitute a period product with rolled up toilet paper, a quarter (25 per cent) had to make do with one tampon or pad a day, while nearly a fifth (17 per cent) went without any form of sanitary protection*. Dani is passionate about girls getting period education at school so no one has to go through their first period confused and embarrassed.
Actress Dani Harmer wears WUKA ULTIMATE™ BOXER SHORTS
Ruby Raut, CEO and Founder of WUKA, says, “This campaign is so close to my heart, because no matter where you are in the world, period shame is in every country. I grew up in Nepal where shame about periods was widespread. As a young girl I experienced a form of Chapaudi, now illegal in Nepal, which meant I wasn’t allowed to go out in the sun, look at men, or touch plants – as it was believed that I would kill them just because I was having a period. #InMyWUKA aims to break the stigma that surrounds discussing our periods. Hearing the experiences from individuals of all walks of life is moving. This is where the start of smashing taboos happens.”
WUKA believes that everybody deserves to be represented in their range of styles, from their all-new Boxer Shorts designed to provide a worry-free night’s sleep, to the Ultimate Midi Briefs made from eco-friendly Tencel fabric, and the Perform Seamless range ensuring a leakproof workout with full coverage. WUKA is proud to be inclusive. All of WUKA’s award-winning Period Pant styles range from 2XS to 4XL and are available in light, medium and heavy flow to suit all periods.
Models wear WUKA ULTIMATE™ BOXER SHORTS, WUKA EVERYDAY™ BRALETTE , WUKA ULTIMATE™ MIDI BRIEF and WUKA BASICS™ HIPSTER
This World Menstrual Health Day, WUKA wants to encourage members of the public to openly share and express their own period stories using #InMyWUKA.
By collectively celebrating and representing a diverse range of individuals, WUKA promotes the empowering message of acceptance and awareness.
For more information about the ‘Axe the Tax’ campaign, visit:
wuka.co.uk/pages/period-pants-tax
www.wuka.co.uk
media@wuka.co.uk
Get your copy of PosAbility Magazine
Read more articles here
