This essay grows out of a panel discussion among five lawyers on the subject of menstrual equity activism. Each of the authors is a scholar, activist, or organizer involved in some form of menstrual equity work. The overall project is both enriched and complicated by an intersectional analysis. This essay increases awareness of existing menstrual equity and menstrual justice work; it also identifies avenues for further inquiry, next steps for legal action, and opportunities that lie ahead. After describing prior and current work at the junction of law and menstruation, the contributors evaluate the successes and limitations of recent legal changes. The authors then turn to conceptual issues about the relationship between menstrual equity and gender justice, as well as the difference between equity and equality. The essay concludes with consideration of the future of menstrual equity and menstrual justice work. The authors envision an expanded, inclusive group of individuals working for greater gender justice.

This chapter explores the gender biases embedded in facially neutral tax laws, focusing specifically on so-called “tampon taxes,” levies exacted on menstrual hygiene products. In most of the states in the United States, menstrual hygiene products are subject to sales tax. Meanwhile, in much of the European Union, these products are treated as luxuries and are subject to the highest rate of VAT. The various human rights affected by tampon taxes include the rights to be free from discrimination, to health, to education, to work, and to dignity. The chapter then considers potential venues and strategies for legal challenges in the European Union, the United States, and elsewhere. Strikingly, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) precedents cited concerning gender discrimination all involve suits brought by men complaining of disparate treatment—much as some of the earliest cases recognizing gender discrimination in the United States were brought by men.

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