Tampax Celebrating 'The Diversity of All People Who Bleed' Doesn't Get the Reaction They Were Going For

Source - Tampax has faced a backlash online after saying that 'not all people with periods are women'. ...

But some feminists online accused Tampax's owner, Procter & Gamble, of 'erasing' women with their message.

Others praised the company for the inclusivity and show of support to trans people in the tweet. 

Among those stoking the flames online were Laurence Fox, who wrote: 'I'm genuinely interested to know who at Tampax thought it might be a good idea to gamble your entire client base (Biological Women) against this anti-factual and anti woman, virtue vomit.'

Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull, founder of the Standing For Women campaign group, said: 'They are virtue signalling. It's quite frightening. When you try and include all identities into womanhood, you ultimately exclude women.' 

Others criticising the brand include trans man Buck Angel, who said: 'The only people who get periods are biological women and transgender men. 

'No other humans get their periods. So no NOT all people get their periods.'

Others online questioned the science of the statement, saying only women have uteruses.

It led to calls to boycott the popular brand by customers who feel they are being 'erased' by the message. 

But pro-trans groups praised the post for including different identities in their message of inclusion and support.

They said much of the criticism directed towards Tampax was 'transphobic' and being carried out by 'TERFs' - trans-exclusionary radical feminists.

You know that fight you hear about and quickly realize you have no skin in the game and your smartest bet is to just stay out of it? For me it's when say, Westham United is playing the Tottenham Hotspurs, and I know it's a big deal to generations of people, but doesn't move the needle for me. Or some war of no consequence. Like the time Britain and Germany squared off in the Anglo-Zanzibar War of 1896 that literally lasted 38 minutes. That's what this is. It's like a heated discussion between a married couple in a restaurant. Where I'm tempted to step in and try to be the peacemaker but I realize I don't know any of the issues or what their personal history so I just stay out of it. Because sometimes the best course of action is total inaction.

I mean, who am I to take sides in this one? I only bleed when I get cut shaving or when I floss. I have no female anatomy (moobs don't qualify). I've never been a woman, identified as a woman, menstruated like a woman or, based on what I'm told, understood a woman's needs. So, if you'll pardon the unfortunate metaphor I don't mean anything by, I don't have a dog in this fight. And with one sister and a mom who was old school Irish Catholic who raised us to believe that all natural, human bodily functions are all equally embarrassing, most of what I know about the topic I learned from that Very Special Episode of "Blossom."

Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull seems to be pretty passionate about trying not to exclude women, which seems to be to be a pretty good point. Buck Angel makes a strong case about not all people get their periods, and I can attest to that. But on the other hand, inclusion and support are really good things. Especially when you're getting your period, which I can also attest to. But nobody wants to be considered a trans-exclusionary radical feminist. I think. I don't know. 

All I do know is that we've got a lot of ironing out to do on this sort of thing. Right now we're busy hating each other over a lot more pressing matters than the marketing campaigns of feminine protection product companies. And when the dust settles on some of those issues (if it does) we're going to finally define some of our terms. To once and for all figure out who is whom and how we're supposed to address them because from the sidelines where I'm sitting, the goal posts have been moves do many times, I can't even find them, never mind figure out where they belong. Until then, I'll just pray for a future where people getting worked up over Tampax ads is the biggest problem we have.