Today, women have the right to study, vote, work, drive, lead, and do anything else they can dream up. The glass ceiling is cracking and the gender pay-gap is narrowing. At least, that’s the vision perpetuated by white feminism. But what about women in other parts of the world? What about our sisters in Gaza?
As the war on Gaza enters its sixth month — and 76th year —- Palestinian women and girls find themselves condemned to immense period poverty. In Gaza, the latest death toll reached 33,634 casualties and the United Nations’ Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that more than half of Palestinian homes have been destroyed. Survivors have scarce access to food, water, shelter, and sanitation; there are issues at every level. That’s without the added monthly complications women face due to non-existent menstrual care. An extreme shortage of period products made headlines in past months, as women were forced to use scraps of tent in place of sanitary pads. Other challenges include a lack of water to wash with and total sanitary deprivation with instances of hundreds of people sharing one toilet. Unsurprisingly, periods are making life in war even more unbearable. However, it’s not something colonial feminism is ready to address.
I interviewed key spokespersons from Sydney’s Palestinian advocacy movement to better understand the issue. Dr. Kate Ahmad, a physician and vocal social justice advocate, balances her consultation hours with time spent working on Australia/New Zealand Doctors for Palestine, a board of medical professionals speaking out against human rights breaches and the “destruction of the Gazan healthcare system”. Medical institutions “have mostly been silent on the issue, despite the targeting of healthcare workers and facilities,” Dr. Ahmad said. I also sat down with a prominent Palestinian student activist from the University of Sydney whose work on campus is helping to keep the crisis in Gaza at the forefront of students’ minds.
According to Dr. Ahmad, “period poverty is a huge problem in Gaza”. There are about “600,000 women in Gaza who have periods. Most of them are displaced and living either in tents or crowded homes.” Sanitary pads are a main concern. In an anecdote, Dr. Ahmad shared one Gazan woman who had been living in Rafah explaining to Doctors for Palestine that pads are “much more expensive than they were prior to the war”. She noted that in addition to being unobtainable, “sanitary pads are being made of different materials and have induced allergic reactions”. With no access to proper sanitary items, women have resorted to tissue and scraps of clothing or tent. Ihsan, a woman living in Gaza told Oxfam aid deliverers, “the pressures and psychological strain have even caused menstrual irregularities for me.” For Ihsan’s 13-year-old daughter, who just began her period, the experience is an atrocity. Across Gaza, many women have opted to suspend menstruation by taking period-delaying pills such as norethisterone, rather than risk infection. This, however, “is not medically appropriate or available for all,” Dr. Ahmad stressed.
A total sanitation crisis has also left menstruating women with high degrees of discomfort and humiliation due to a lack of privacy and water. This is paired with adverse health outcomes such as UTIs and heavier or more frequent bleeding. The “compounding issue is the lack of bathroom facilities and water,” Dr. Ahmad warns. “Many women living in tents have no access to normal toilets or bathrooms and are forced to use a makeshift area near their tent.” Water may only run once a week, making regular washing near impossible. “In a war zone, where almost every aspect of life is difficult, this further contributes to deep distress.”
According to one Palestinian student, student attitudes on campus are largely in support of Gaza. “The majority of people, especially right now, are pro-Palestine,” and that includes the student unions and the majority of the Student Representative Council. However, the student noted that the University of Sydney operates “like a business, so the interests of workers’ rights, the interests of Indigenous rights and climate activism has never really been at the forefront”. The same can be said for Gaza, with Vice Chancellor Mark Scott, limiting pro-Palestinian activity on campus late last year. On a national scale, polls consistently show Australians are more sympathetic to Palestinians than is reflected in Australian Government policy. In response, Nasser Mashni, President of the Australia Palestine Advocacy Network, stated “recognition is a first step towards upholding the full rights of Palestinians, including the right to self-determination, dignity and equality in their homeland, but it’s only the beginning of the work Australia needs to do.”
A dominant barrier in our collective receptiveness to Palestinian struggles could be white feminism. The Palestinian student emphasised to me the importance of dismantling disparity in our attention to women’s rights in the Global South versus the West. The student explained that a false facade exists where many believe “that colonial feminism or white feminism is pro-women’s rights, when it’s actually just about white women’s rights: things like equal pay and making more women CEOs.” “Real feminist liberation is liberation for all, including black and brown and all coloured women.” When asked about period poverty in Gaza the student told me that a “lack of access to hygiene care and medical care” is correlated with longstanding “implications of colonialism”, a recurring phenomenon in “Global South communities.” They argued it is vital to understand period poverty “as a systemic issue,” and that advocacy must focus on “creating an environment where Palestine can self-determine and self-govern,” rather than handing out free period products.
Where to from here? Achieving a permanent ceasefire and allowing humanitarian aid through to those in need has been called for as the main factor preventing Gaza’s recovery from period poverty. Dr. Ahmad and the board of Doctors for Palestine will continue to fight for “a restoration of the infrastructure in Gaza, and freedom, dignity and safety for Palestinian women”. Moving forward, Dr. Ahmad said that while, “aid organisations should continue to try and get sanitary products into Gaza… attention should also be given to restoring water supply and providing other means of washing”. For students looking to get involved, the Palestinian student interviewed said that “knowledge is power”. The student urged others to make efforts in “speaking to Palestinians and speaking to pro-Palestinian advocates on campus about what’s happening” and “trying to find a way to learn more”. They also highlighted the importance of lifting the siege on Gaza and ending the military occupation to further human rights abuses.
