Mexico City declares 'dignified menstruation' a constitutional right

Mexico City's Congress has constitutionally recognized "dignified menstruation," mandating authorities to implement multisectoral policies in health, education, social services, and infrastructure. This landmark decision aims to address the challenges faced by many women and girls in accessing menstrual hygiene products.

The reforms, championed by several deputies from the MORENA parliamentary group and the Progressive Transformation Parliamentary Association, include launching public awareness campaigns to demystify menstruation and promote evidence-based information. They also call for comprehensive school programs on sexual and reproductive education with a gender perspective, and protocols to combat "menstrual bullying" in schools. Additionally, health centers will offer workshops providing menstrual products alongside reproductive health information, with an emphasis on including men in menstrual management education.

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we cannot speak of substantive equality if we do not consider that a physiological process is an obstacle to accessing the same rights.

Anahí Rodríguez Martínez, founder of the collective "Menstruación Digna México," emphasized that substantive equality cannot be achieved without considering how physiological processes like menstruation act as barriers to accessing rights. She cited national survey data indicating that 2 out of 10 women miss work due to menstruation, and 4 out of 10 girls are absent from school. Rodríguez Martínez highlighted the initial lack of data as a significant hurdle for advocating public policies, underscoring the importance of official statistics.

She expressed hope that the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI) will eventually include menstrual management in its indicators, similar to practices in Colombia. While acknowledging the constitutional recognition as a major step, Rodríguez Martínez suggested that further progress is needed to ensure full implementation and accessibility.

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when the collective started, there was no data about this, which was a problem because 'they could not demand public policies,' and to state that menstruation was a cause of school absenteeism, without figures.