By Camille Aubin
[email protected]m
International Women’s Day was created to celebrate the involvement and achievements of women in our society. It is also a time to reflect on the gender inequality that persists today here in Canada. This year’s campaign theme is about #ChooseToChallenge. “A challenged world is an alert world and from challenge comes change. So let’s all choose to challenge” reads the message on internationalwomensday.com.
Perhaps we can challenge our federal and provincial governments to do better for women by providing free contraception in Canada, as well as access to feminine hygiene products such as tampons and pads at no cost, and while we’re at it, maybe we could finally put an end to the pink tax! The pink tax, for those unfamiliar with the term, is the term used to describe the price gap that often sees products marketed as “women’s” come with higher prices, even if they are virtually identical, save for details such as colour, to those marketed “men’s” products.
Multiple studies have shown that women’s products cost at least 30 cents more than the same products for men, with the only difference being the marketing and the colour. There’s no reasonable justification for women to pay more for the exact same thing.
Having control of your fertility should in no way be limited by the cost of contraceptive products. When women have the power to choose first and foremost whether or not to get pregnant at all, and if so, when to get pregnant, and how many children to have. It allows them to decide, for example, whether they want to pursue higher education or to invest more time into their careers.
The same goes for feminine hygiene products. Providing free and better access to them gives women a better chance to attend school and work without worry. This is another effective way to ensure that women are not at a disadvantage for simply being a woman.
It is surprising that no policies have yet been created favouring free contraception, considering there is a solid economic case to support such an initiative. The costs associated with unintended pregnancies, such as abortion and child care subsidies, are much higher than the costs associated with universal prescription contraception. AccessBC, which advocates for free access to contraception in B.C, has presented policy recommendations that could save the country more than $95 million annually. “In Canada, unintended pregnancies cost Canadian health systems millions of dollars each year. Studies have shown that providing universal contraception coverage could see that entire amount saved in as little as six to twelve months,” explained AccessBC in a recent press release.
Providing access at no cost for products that are a necessity, not a luxury will have powerful impacts on income, health and family stability. Let’s challenge our government to do better for women by offering free contraception, feminine hygiene products and an end to the pink tax.
