NCKU's Menstrual Equality Issues Special Exhibition: Exploring the Appearance of Menstrual Cycles Through the Years-國立成功大學永續發展SDGs

The 9th Pink Dot "Big Dish" is now underway! From today until May 17th, the "Through the Years - Menstrual Equality Issues Special Exhibition" will be held at the first-floor multi-functional reading area of the Main Library on the National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) main campus. The exhibition includes displays on menstrual issues and a themed book exhibition. On May 4th, historian Jin-Yu Xie will be invited to give a special lecture titled "The History of Menstruation" to explore the understanding and myths of menstruation in the East and West. People from all walks of life are invited to pay attention to menstrual issues, regardless of whether they have a menstrual cycle, to jointly create a more gender-friendly environment.


The "Through the Years - Menstrual Equality Issues Special Exhibition" held its opening ceremony this morning (27th), with many colleagues from various departments attending. NCKU's Vice Dean of Academic Affairs, Rwei-Ling Yu, specially attended to convey the support and attention of NCKU President Meng-Ru Shen and Dean of Student Affairs Liang-Yi Hung to the exhibition's theme. The exhibition is organized by NCKU TO．拉酷社 and the organizing team of the 9th Pink Dot. This year's Pink Dot team includes not only NCKU students but also students from Tainan University and Chia Nan University of Pharmacy and Science. Yan-Ling Shi, the chief convener of the 9th Tainan Pink Dot team, said that she had known about NCKU TO．拉酷社 since high school, and she was grateful for NCKU's provision of a diverse environment for students from Greater Tainan to work together on gender equality-related issues.


Menstrual issues are not only concerns for biological females or those with menstruation cycles. At the opening of the exhibition on the 27th, guests of all genders generously shared their own stories related to menstruation. For example, NCKU Gender Equality Committee member Nai-Ying Ko, who is also a founding member of NCKU TO．拉酷社, not only attended in a pink dress in line with the spirit of Pink Dot but also shared the tradition of announcing a daughter's first period with red eggs to friends and family. Hsi-Jen Chen, Deputy Director of the NCKU Library, mentioned her experience of buying sanitary pads. Hsi-Jen Chen expressed that in the past, knowledge of menstruation was only from textbooks, which felt distant. This exhibition aims to bridge the gap and enhance everyone's correct understanding of menstruation.


The Vice President of Student Affairs, Liang-Yi Hung, expressed support and attention to the theme of this exhibition.


Menstruation is a topic and life experience that many people are facing. The theme of the event, "Through the Years," symbolizes the close connection between people's lives and menstruation throughout their lives; from the moment of birth, every person, regardless of gender, has a profound connection with menstruation. NCKU Gender Equality Committee member Chen Heng'an said that menstruation represents the rhythm of life for people, which is something you will know over the years, but because it has been so long, it is not always taken seriously. The exhibition theme "Through the Years" describes it very profoundly and aptly.


Former NCKU Gender Equality Committee member and current Director of the Department of Humanities and Social Medicine at NCKU's School of Medicine, Hsiu-Yun Wang, said that the issue of menstruation is intertwined with issues such as women's reproductive rights, body autonomy, mother-daughter relationships, and the sexualization of female bodies. "The progress of society can be seen from the evolution of discussions around menstruation. I admire the efforts of the curatorial team in creating this high-quality exhibition."


To create a gender-friendly campus environment, NCKU began implementing the "Provision of Emergency Sanitary Pads for Female Students" policy in March 2022. Free sanitary pads are provided in the offices of various departments and at the Health Care Unit on the 2nd floor of the Yún Píng Building and the Gender Equality Education Committee on the 3rd floor of the East Wing of the Yún Píng Building on the Kuang-Fu campus. Current NCKU Gender Equality Committee member and medical student Cai Jinyu is an important advocate for this policy. Cai Jinyu expressed the hope that through this special exhibition, more people would become aware of menstrual issues and would be able to make good use of campus policies to create a gender-friendly and comfortable campus environment.


The theme of the 9th Pink Dot event in 2023 is "Setting the Table: Pink and Black in Attendance," which is expected to present various gender issues in a banquet-style manner. The "Through the Years - Menstrual Equality Issues Special Exhibition" held this morning on the 27th is a highlight of the 2023 Pink Dot event, from the exhibition design concept, curatorial layout to the exhibition content and activities. The team spent several months building the exhibition area from scratch. Upon entering the exhibition hall, the attention is immediately drawn to a large red table at the entrance; the exhibition area is designed based on the reproductive organs of biological females, with the exhibition line gradually entering a closed exhibition area symbolizing the vaginal opening, hoping to lead visitors to explore menstruation progressively through spatial perception.


The NCKU Gender Equality Committee stated that although there are fewer restrictions on discussions about menstruation in today's society compared to the past, there is still a lack of venues for people of different gender identities to understand menstruation. This menstrual-themed special exhibition, combined with the campus policy of providing emergency sanitary pads for female students, aims to increase awareness of menstrual poverty and menstrual equality issues and their connection to a gender-friendly environment on campus. The exhibition also hopes to introduce menstrual and its diverse derivative products, as well as to read about women's real menstrual experiences, so that those without menstrual experiences can also have a preliminary understanding of this topic.


The NCKU "Through the Years - Menstrual Equality Issues Special Exhibition" includes: small stories about menstrual experiences such as first menstruation, irregularities, illnesses, leaks, and infections; relevant physiological products such as sanitary pads, menstrual cups, cloth pads, and tampons, and introduces their usage methods and pros and cons through story sharing. The themed book exhibition on menstrual issues showcases diverse books from medical, historical, humanistic, social, psychological, and literary perspectives.