mckenzie orders report on providing free menstrual hygiene products in city facilities

teen hockey player jada malott has suffered the anxiety of suddenly needing a menstrual hygiene product and running around an arena asking if anyone had one to spare.“no one had one and what was i going to do? i had to end up using toilet paper, and that’s embarrassing,” said the 16-year-old activist, who with her dad mike has been at the forefront in trying to convince city hall to provide tampons and pads free in city of windsor washrooms. they made impassioned arguments at budget time three weeks ago. and on monday, ward 9 coun. kieran mckenzie responded by taking the first required step toward making it happen when he asked for an administration report on the issue.making these products free, instead of charging a quarter or more from a dispenser that is sometimes broken or empty, is an issue of fairness and equity, say the father and daughter. they point out that all other products people use in a public washroom — like toilet paper, soap and paper towels — are provided free. jada said she hears stories all the time from friends caught without a menstrual product when they urgently need it and no change, at school and at city facilities like recreation centres and arenas.“they have to use a sock or use a wad of toilet paper or overuse a product and put their health at risk,” she said. “that’s not ok.”mike, a windsor assembly plant worker who’s been involved with the local tampon tuesdays campaign since its beginning, made free menstrual products in city facilities one of his campaign platforms for his unsuccessful run at the ward 7 seat during last year’s byelection. on budget day, he told councillors: “if you want to be a world-class city, this is a world-class move.”it’s a women’s issue, a health issue and addresses systemic inequality, he said.“you don’t pay for toilet paper by the square, you don’t have to pay a quarter to dry your hands off, you don’t have to pay a quarter to use hand soap,” he said wednesday. but paying for pads and tampons in public washrooms is “just something that, due to the secrecy and taboo around women’s menstrual cycles, that we don’t address.“but that’s changing now.”a movement that started a few years ago with municipalities like london trying pilot projects is gathering momentum. locally, the public school board is targeting 2022 for having dispensers with free menstrual products in all 70 schools. the local catholic board is also considering such an initiative.mike said based on the london experience, the cost is pretty modest. that city budgeted $25,000 for its one-year pilot project at 40 of its facilities, with most of that money spent on buying and installing new dispensers. last year, it moved forward citywide with an additional 36 facilities. the annual cost of pads and tampons was under $9,000, according to news reports.mckenzie said based on the experiences of other communities, “i don’t believe the costs are going to be exorbitant” to provide free products at windsor’s arenas, rec centre, pools and other city facilities visited by the public. he said he asked for an administration report because he knew his fellow councillors would want to know the details on how the program would work and what it would cost, including how it’s worked in other cities, before greenlighting it.“it’s an equity issue and it’s a dignity issue,” said mckenzie, noting that it’s also an economic issue for some women “who sometimes unfortunately have to make the choice between whether they can purchase these products or go without and have some sort of makeshift solution.”food banks are screaming for these products because there’s such a demand for them by women struggling to make ends meet, said jada, who said having the city of windsor provide them free sets a good example for other places to follow.“seeing this in city facilities, yes, is very symbolic because it assists in that stigmatization battle, normalizes it and makes it normal for other cities and other businesses to look into doing it in their bathrooms.”bcross@postmedia.com