Pantone often makes headlines for their ‘colour of the year’ picks, but their latest shade has been created in an effort to decrease the stigma around periods.
As part of a partnership with the Swedish brand Intimina (who make some very chic reusable cups), the colour experts have released the shade titled ‘Period’, with hopes that it will encourage a dialogue about the representation and perception of periods.
In the announcement made by Pantone, the description of the vibrant hue read:
“An active and adventurous red hue, courageous Period emboldens people who menstruate to feel proud of who they are. To own their period with self-assurance; to stand up and passionately celebrate the exciting and powerful life force they are born with; to urge everyone regardless of gender to feel comfortable to talk spontaneously and openly about this pure and natural bodily function.”
The shade was created as part of Intimina’s menstrual empowerment campaign ‘Seen+Heard’.
As the brand says, “Menstruation is a life force we are born with, and it’s time we talk about this normal bodily function accurately.”
The colourful debut comes after Facebook came under fire for labelling a period advert as too ‘shocking’ to run, proving that period stigmatisation is still alive and well in 2020.
Despite half the world’s population experiencing them on a monthly basis, periods still remain a sort of public ‘taboo’ to many, and the representation of them in media only further permeates the ignorance that they are somehow controversial.
Time after time we see commercials using blue liquids, confetti, or even glitter to depict blood in a bid to make them more palatable to those who still consider them to be offensive.
But periods, and all that comes with them, is a natural, everyday part of life. And around the world, we see people struggling to access basic sanitary products, only made worse by the pandemic.
So while this colour may not completely eradicate the stigma or end period poverty, it is bringing attention to a wider conversation that the world is in dire need of.
