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    Why Period Activists Think The 'Drop Of Blood' Emoji Is A Huge Win

    The nonprofit group Plan International UK has been lobbying for an emoji to represent menstruation since 2017. And now they have one — although not everyone is a fan of the design.
    by Malaka Gharib Feb 08, 2019 3 minutes
    The red drop of blood (left) was designated as an official emoji to symbolize menstruation, among other things, this year. The design at right, submitted in 2017, was not accepted.

    When Mashiyat Rahman, 22, texts her friends about her period, she sends them the "crying" emoji to describe her mood, the "knife" emoji to describe painful cramps and the "sweat" emoji — which looks like water droplets — to illustrate a heavy flow.

    But there's never been a specific emoji that she could use to represent menstruation — until now.The Unicode Consortium, the organization that decides which symbols get to be this week.

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