Meet Immediate Response Grantee No More Secrets: Addressing Period Poverty in Philadelphia
We recently had the opportunity to sit down with Lynette Medley M.Ed, Founder/CEO of No More Secrets, a recent Immediate Response Action Fund (IRAF) grantee. Read below as she discusses period poverty here in Philadelphia and how her organization is working towards making menstrual health and hygiene products accessible for all.
WW: What is period poverty?
Lynette: Period Poverty is the inability for persons to purchase monthly supplies of Menstrual care products due to financial constraints in addition to safely accessing waste management services such as running water and operable toilets.
“Period poverty is a socially constructed health disparity and epidemic that’s affecting half our population. It affects anybody who’s having any economic difficulties — it’s not just people who are ‘poor’ as people say, even middle-class people are affected. You might pay rent, pay utilities, do what you can for your children, but there’s nothing to bridge the gap for menstrual products and I don’t think people realize that.”
WW: How is your organization working to address period poverty here in Philadelphia?
Lynette: No More Secrets Mind Body Spirit inc. is a comprehensive sexuality awareness organization founded by Lynette Medley in 2012 to address health disparities in marginalized communities. She and her daughter Nya McGlone began fighting period poverty 6 years ago by opening the 1st Menstrual hygiene bank in the tri-state area and delivery services through in-home and national courier services. They then subsequently co-founded and opened The SPOT Period which is the first Menstrual hub and Uterine Wellness center in the nation on February 20, 2021, during a national pandemic through a crowdfunding campaign.
In the last 14 months, we have independently distributed over 4 million Menstrual products to vulnerable communities
WW: What was the impact of the Immediate Response Action Fund (IRAF) grant on your organization?
Lynette: The IRAF grant was pivotal to creating the safe space needed for our communities because the funds allowed us to immediately make a rent payment, purchase additional Menstrual products, and obtain WiFi services which were essential to our communities being able to access health care resources remotely.
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What You Can Do
To learn more about period poverty and steps for advocacy, view articles and resources below.
