Name: Zoe Karp
Social Justice Group: Menstrual Health
Date of Fieldwork: January 29, 2018
Name of Organization: No organization
Person (people) with whom I met and their job titles: Jennifer Weiss-Wolf – Author of Periods Gone Public: Taking a Stand for Menstrual Equity
Type of Fieldwork: Interview
What I did:
Jennifer Weiss-Wolf came to speak to our class about her book, and then our group interviewed her.
What I learned:
We learned how different cultures perceive menstruation. For example, Native Americans used period blood as war paint and decorations, but now, in Nepal, women who have periods have to spend that time in tents. A few years ago, a woman was bitten by a snake and she died, just because people are afraid of periods.
What I learned about Social Justice “work” and/or Civil and Human rights “work” from this fieldwork:
I learned that anyone can become interested in anything. It was completely by chance that Jennifer Weiss-Wolf discovered the menstrual movement. Anything can happen that sparks an interest in someone, it could be swimming at Coney Island on New Year’s Day or really anything else, but it’s always something that sparks your interest and changes your life.