Only bleeding: How Swedes opened up about periods

The Documentary Podcast

• Episode: Only bleeding: How Swedes opened up about periods
• Website: The Documentary Podcast
• Feed URL: http://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/p02nq0lx.rss
• Duration: 00:28:32
• Published: 2021-12-07 04:00

“It’s alright (I’m only bleeding)”. In 2017, these words were emblazoned on the Stockholm subway or tunnelbana, alongside a giant poster of an ice-skater with a red-stained crotch. The deliberately provocative image was the work of Swedish cartoonist Liv Strömquist, who was on a mission to destigmatise periods. But even in one of the most feminist countries in the world, showing images of menstrual blood in a public space offended many, and triggered a national debate. Stockholm-based broadcaster Maddy Savage meets the artist, and discovers some of the taboo-busting initiatives in culture, business and education that have ridden on the coat-tails of her impact.