This Philly Group Is Fighting Period Poverty with Handmade Pads
Nestled in North Philadelphia, dozens of Black women gather each week with one mission: to make the world a little easier for girls and women in need.
Every Wednesday, members of the Pan-African Sisterhood Health Initiative, or P.A.S.H.I., gather at the Ujima Friends Peace Center.
Armed with sewing machines, scissors, and brightly colored fabrics, they craft reusable menstrual pads for girls in Africa and beyond.
“They told us that that [sic] girls often missed school for days when they had their periods,” co-founder Maisha Sullivan-Ongoza told The Philadelphia Inquirer, adding, “and if they stained their clothing while at school, they were teased and bullied.”
“We don’t call it period poverty, we call it menstrual hygiene management,” she continued. “We use 100% cotton fabric. We researched and found a commercial product called Zorb, a 100% compressed cotton that absorbs liquid that is seven to eight times its weight. Then we used a laminated cotton material as the water-resistant layer.”
The pads, made from donated materials, are durable and can last up to three years with proper care and washing, offering an eco-friendly alternative to disposable products.
The Ujima Friends Peace Center is housed in a building that is part of a collection of other buildings with organizations providing social services at 17th and Lehigh in Philadelphia.
