Tampons, pads in Sydney university toilets sparks debate

A decision to stock male bathrooms with tampons at one of Australia’s sandstone universities has caused a furore on social media.

Sydney Uni student union has made the decision to install tampon dispensers in three university buildings.

A decision to stock male bathrooms with tampons to help trans students at one of Australia’s top universities has provoked a furore on social media.

Sydney University’s student union has made the decision to install pad and tampon dispensers in male bathrooms in three university buildings to “better cater for trans men” on their period, in an Australian university first.

A white A4 sign hangs above two dispensers with the words: “Respecting and supporting our gender-diverse community with free sanitary products for those that need them.”

University of Sydney Union president Cole Scott-Curwood told news.com.au the union was committed to “supporting student welfare, diversity and inclusion”.

“We know how important it is to remove barriers to access for all our members, and anyone who needs period products should be able to access them,” he said.

“We don’t know when our members might need period products for themselves or those they care for, so we’re providing these products in a readily-accessible way.”

The sign in the male bathrooms at Sydney University which are now stocked with a tampon and pad dispenser. Picture: Twitter: @Daniel

Mr Scott-Curwood added the USU is also providing a number of other non-food welfare items for free to students this year as part of an increased budget.

Rachael Wong, the CEO of Women’s Forum Australia, criticised the decision, arguing the idea “feeds the fiction that men can be women and women can be men, and that therefore, ‘some men have periods’”.

“This is particularly concerning in a university setting where the pursuit of truth is meant to be paramount,” Ms Wong said.

“It is also a waste of resources, which could be directed to the many women and girls who are still unable to access or afford menstrual products.”

The dispensers in male bathrooms at Sydney University. Picture: Twitter: @Daniel

Sydney Uni Student Representative Council preside Lia Perkins defended the decision, saying students were broadly supportive.

“It should be expanded across all university bathrooms,” she told news.com.au.

“The SRC wholly supports the rights of women, non-binary and transgender students to be safe and supported on campus, and will work on campaigns for this objective.”

Social media reaction was volatile and mixed.

One social media user said he had no problem with the items being free but questioned why they were in toilets.

“Just put them in public spaces,” he fumed.

Another commentator agreed, saying the dispenser should have been mounted outside the adjacent men’s and women’s bathrooms “if that rare scenario were the intention”.

While another argued that “Aboriginal women and girls in remote communities still can’t participate in their communities because of period poverty. Maternity & menstrual rights are now available to middle class men thanks to ‘inclusion’ policies, but not marginalised women”.

In America, as more universities focus on LGBTQ+ inclusive initiatives, tampons and pads have become commonplace in men’s bathrooms on campuses.

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