Periods! Why These Eighth Graders Aren't Afraid To Talk About Them
The middle school winners of the NPR Student Podcast Challenge offer their perspective on why talking about periods is so taboo — and why that's silly.
In the second floor girl's bathroom at Bronx Prep Middle School, there's a sign taped to the back of the toilet stall doors. It's a guide on how to "properly dispose feminine products." On the list? "Make sure that no one views or handles product."
"It's not even saying the word pad, it just says product!" explains Kathaleen Restitullo, 13, "just like, don't let anyone see that you are on your period."
But Kathaleen and six of her fellow female eighth-graders decided they're tired of NOT talking about periods. So they — and it's the middle school grand prize winner in the first-ever NPR Student Podcast Challenge.
