Seriously, why? A machine that quietly provides pads in a Dhaka University bathroom becomes national breaking news, and suddenly some of you men of the internet can’t breathe without spewing opinions. Overnight it’s “religion,” “tradition,” “culture,” all wrapped in the same nasty comments that scream more about your insecurities than about a vending machine.
Let’s be real: menstruation isn’t shameful, pads aren’t sinful, and menstrual health isn’t optional. People bleed—women, trans men, non-binary folks. What’s actually shameful is how obsessed you are with controlling bodies you don’t even live in. Students asked for dignity, and you responded with propaganda.
You don’t bleed. You don’t carry the fear of stains through a three-hour lecture. You don’t calculate whether you can afford a packet of pads at the end of the month. But you line up online to police a vending machine like it’s the end of civilization. Newsflash: it’s not. What threatens you isn’t the machine, it’s the possibility of people moving through the world without shame.
And the same old script again: “haram,” “immoral,” “unnecessary.” What’s actually obscene is how quickly you turn menstrual health into your stage for moral panic. You’re not protecting culture, you’re protecting patriarchy.
So here’s the truth: sanitary napkin machines are not the problem. You are. Your obsession, your fragile masculinity, your constant need to insert yourself into spaces that were never yours. If the sight of a pad dispenser shakes your faith or your ego, maybe it’s time to ask what’s weaker, your religion, your masculinity, or just you.
Bangladesh Feminist Archives 