Why China’s women are talking back like never before

One night, Caicai suddenly had her period. It was late and all the shops near her home had closed, so she had to order sanitary pads through a courier service. When the courier, a man, called her from a shop, he sounded embarrassed as he whispered, “Hello beautiful, did you want … that thing?” Caicai whispered back, “Yes, I want that thing.”

They went on to discuss the different brands and functions of sanitary products in the same hush-hush manner, as if they were buying narcotics on the black market.

After the courier made the purchase on her behalf, he called again, reporting a mini crisis: the shop had run out of black plastic bags for him to discreetly carry the feminine hygiene products in.

Comedian Caicai recently performed this skit during an online stand-up comedy show in China, as the studio audience roared with laughter. After her set went viral, she drew praise from hundreds of women, who said they resonated with her experience. Chinese women are fed up with period shaming, with having to call it another name, hide sanitary pads from men, or feel bad if menstrual blood stains their clothes.

“Menstruation is not our fault, nor should it make anyone feel ashamed,” read one Weibo comment on Caicai’s performance. “It’s one of the most normal physiological phenomena of human beings. Why should we be as silent as thieves about menstruation, and use code words for menstruation and sanitary towels? Girls have to silently endure menstrual pain every month and bear the extra expenses of menstruation, including sanitary towels and painkillers. If we are really striving for equality, please seriously consider menstruation.”