“There’s giant dancing tampons outside Parliament House” is a sentence we NEVER thought we’d write, but here it is:
There’s giant dancing tampons outside Parliament House.
Observe:
Giant dancing tampons protesting tax on sanitary products on front lawn of Parliament House pic.twitter.com/kOQaJelUAc
— ellinghausen (@ellinghausen) May 27, 2015
If the placards and costumes didn’t give it away, the giant dancing tampons are a protest staged in relation to the tampon tax debate currently raging round Australia, much like some women (NOT ALL WOMEN) rage while bleeding from their vaginas once a month and buying a ‘luxury’ product to sort it. I mean, fuck, how else could women ride a horse, swim in a pool, wear ALL the white clothes that tampon ads gleefully portray?
The protest kicked off in Canberra this morning and is ongoing, so we’ll keep updating as more news comes in.
Tampon Tax protest pic.twitter.com/sBNis9VyAM
— ellinghausen (@ellinghausen) May 27, 2015
Subeta killing it for the camera crews #tampontax pic.twitter.com/vTmfvhNSgr
— GetUp! (@GetUp) May 27, 2015
The campaign to remove the GST on tampons was started by Sydney University student Subeta Vimalarajah three weeks ago, when she brought up the fact that although condoms, sunscreen, and nicotine patches are considered ‘necessary health goods’ and are exempt from GST, tampons are not. This essentially applies a tax on cis-gendered women for a normal bodily function that still – still – carries an air of shame and embarrassment.The ‘Stop Taxing My Period!’ petition has 50,000 signatures and ;counting.
Joe Hockey admitted on Q&A this week these essential sanitary items shouldn’t have a GST on them, yet he was thwarted by Tony Abbott announcing not 24 hours later that the Government has no plans to remove it.
Hence, giant dancing tampons protesting outside Parliament House.
Oh, what a time to be alive!
@TonyAbbottMHR #auspol #tampontax #Budget2015 #LNPfail pic.twitter.com/L5wUT3p6KR
— Kate Doolan (@crocodilekatie) May 28, 2015
Submissions to the government’s tax white paper task force close on Monday, June 1. After that, it’s in the hands of the government to look at tax reform and maybe, just maybe, include pads and tampons in the list of ‘necessary health items’.
Oh, btw this happened yesterday in Sydney. We have a giant tampon migration on our hands:
