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LA Will Provide Free Menstrual Products At 6 Libraries
Downtown L.A.'s Central Library, one of six locations where a new pilot program offering free menstrual products will be launched.
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The Los Angeles City Council has approved a pilot program that will provide free menstrual products at six public libraries.
The pilot program is expected to run from April to September at downtown's Central Library and the Canoga Park, West Valley, Los Feliz, Will and Ariel Durant, and Junipero Serra branches.
“Equity isn't treating everybody exactly the same. It's recognizing that some groups of people — in this case, women and some transgender men — have different needs that must be met in able for them to fully participate in the services that the city offers,” said Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, who first proposed the program in 2019.
Menstrual Equity is a movement that seeks to make feminine hygiene products accessible to all women, regardless of their socio-economic status.
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In October, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law the The Menstrual Equity for All Act, which requires all public schools serving grades 6-12, community colleges, and public universities to stock their restrooms with supplies of free feminine products.
On Monday, UCLA announced that it will begin providing free menstrual products in campus restrooms beginning April 4.
Blumenfield said he hopes the program will be expanded to all city facilities so that menstrual products will be as widely available as toilet paper, soap and paper towels.
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