“Our Revolution Has Style”: Contemporary Menstrual Product Activists “Doing Feminism” in the Third Wave

Abstract

An in-depth content analysis of five web sites and eight paper zines (self-produced and distributed maga- zines) was conducted to uncover the inspiration, content, and unique strategies associated with text -based contemporary menstrual product activism. Menstrual product activism is loosely defined as various attempts to expose the hazards of commercial "feminine protection" to both women's bod- ies and the environment and the promotion of healthier, less expensive, and less resource-intensive alternatives. This ac- tivism's discourse draws on many traditions to produce its re- sistance to mainstream menses management. The movement, first and foremost, is the legacy of several decades of related activism, dating to the mid1970s. Contemporary menstrual product activism updates and modifies this tradition with the "do it yourself" ethic and anti-corporate philosophy of Punk culture and Third Wave feminist ideals of anti-essentialism, inclusion, humor, irony, and reappropriation. To date, this activist agenda has received little scholarly attention, yet it promises to yield meaningful insight into so called Third Wave feminist theory and practice and reveal the resilience of a woman-centered modern history of resistance.