Abstract

 
 
 This Essay considers the profit to be made in virtue signaling solely for the purpose of attracting customers and driving sales: Pro-female, woke menstruation messaging that may merely be an exploitative and empty co-optation. Feminists should expect more of menstrual capitalists, including a commitment that firms operating within this space address the diapositive issue of period poverty and meaningfully assist those unable to meet basic hygiene needs who may never be direct consumers. This Essay serves as a thought piece that first presents, in Section I, the B Corporation as a relatively new direction in corporate law that redefines the corporation as a potential agent of social change. Section II considers the way in which B Corporation certification may serve as an implicit sorting device to distinguish companies performing hollow virtue signaling from those menstrual capitalists committed to socially responsible pro-female business practices.
 
 
Highlights
Period poverty became the subject of global media attention when it was reported that a schoolgirl used a rolled sock because her mother was unable to afford the purchase of sanitary pads,[1] thereby focusing attention on the fact that those living in poverty may not be able to cover basic expenses that include shelter, food, and in this instance, hygiene.[2]
A menstruation industrial complex has arisen to commercialize the monthly clean-up of uterine waste, and it is interesting to consider the ways in which period poverty and menstrual capitalism[9] are opposite sides of the same coin
Feminists should expect more of menstrual capitalists, including a commitment that firms operating within this space address the diapositive issue of period poverty and meaningfully assist those unable to meet basic hygiene needs who may never be direct consumers
Summary
The term “greenwashing” was coined in 1986 to refer to companies that exaggerate a commitment to the environment,15 “faux CSR” was coined in 2011 to refer to firms that misrepresent a commitment to social responsibility,[16] and most recently, “woke washing” has come to refer to appropriating language of social activism into marketing campaigns.[17]. One study estimates that women control 70% to 80% of all consumer purchasing.[18] Counterhegemonic marketing tactics may drive profit, but if not authentic, they are commoditizing feminism in a way that is base, appropriating, and exploitative. “Slacktivism” or low-effort activism will exploit a cause only for marketing purposes or production value, but the company itself takes no action to support the cause.[19] It is supporting a cause in a performative or minimally burdensome (and likely minimally productive) way. 983, 985-86 (2011) (referring to faux corporate social responsibility). 18 Amy Nelson, Women Drive Majority of Consumer Purchasing and It’s Time to Meet Their Needs, INC. 20 Yeosun Yoon et al, The Effect of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Activities on Companies with Bad Reputations, 16 J. 21 See Elisabeth Paulet & Francesc Relano, Differentiating between Sincere and Insincere Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): Evidence from the German Banking Industry, 552 SAFE BANK 65, 65-84 (2014) (reaching this conclusion in the context of the banking industry)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
