Procter & Gamble (P&G) announced it would remove the symbol from its packaging after a number of campaigners said that the image was not inclusive of transgender individuals who were assigned female at birth and use the sanitary products.
A number of feminists voiced their displeasure with the decision and said they would boycott the brand from now on, with some stating the move was part of a concerted effort towards the “elimination of women’s biology.”
The decision to make the change came after Ben Saunders, an 18-year-old trans activist from the U.K. who was named campaigner of the year by the LGBT charity Stonewall, wrote to Always on Twitter to complain in June.
Saunders’ request was followed by similar calls from a trans activist known as Melly Boom on Twitter, who asked why it was “imperative to have the female symbol on their sanitary products?”
They added: “There are non-binary and trans folks who still need to use your products too you know!”
After some consultation, P&G released a letter to those who had brought up the issue, stating it was thankful to them for helping the brand improve.
“We listened to you and our marketing team worked a solution!” the letter said.
“We are glad to inform you that as of December we will use a new wrapper design without the feminine symbol.
“Please just be aware that you might find products with the old wrapper design in the stores for some weeks after December, as the distribution of the new packages might take some time - the new designs should be in store Jan/Feb 2020.”
Though the move was welcomed by trans campaigners, some feminists opposed to the gender-neutral packaging complained.
Feminist campaigner Julie Bindel told The Mail on Sunday: “Removing the female symbol from sanitary towel packaging is basically denying the existence of women. We’re now moving towards the total elimination of women’s biology. The women’s symbol has been used by feminists for decades.
“This is pure cowardice and virtue signalling from these big corporate brands who are capitulating to the trans agenda.”
Following the backlash, P&G released a statement addressing the concerns.
“For over 35 years Always has championed girls and women, and we will continue to do so,” a spokesperson said.
“We’re also committed to diversity and inclusion, and after hearing from many people across genders and age groups, we realized that not everyone who has a period and needs to use a pad identifies as female.
“To ensure that anyone who needs to use a period product feels comfortable in doing so with Always, we updated our pad wrapper design. Our mission remains to ensure no girl loses confidence at puberty because of her gender or period.”
The brand became the second multinational firm to come under fire for meeting the demands of trans activists in a matter of weeks.
Flora, a butter alternative owned by Upfield, came under severe criticism after the brand decided to remove all its advertising from the popular forum Mumsnet, which was accused of becoming a platform for “trans-hostile” posts.
The website, however, said it would not “tolerate transphobic comments” but believes in “free speech.”
