and squash down the stereotypes.
I’m just a person who is happy to do this this.
Anybody who has an idea to help, if they can
collaborate with the right team, they can make a
big difference.
HF: Can you talk a little bit about your
partnership with the company Lola?
DM: We have partnered with the natural
menstrual products company Lola, who really
create a great product. They have donated over
60,000 tampons for distribution in DC, Chicago
and Indianapolis, and these distributions will
be continuing over the next year. This is how
change happens. We are working with a lot of
organizations and companies for collections.
The US Department of Agriculture, the National
Institute of Health, the US Food and Drug
Administration, Sephora, doctors’ offices, OB/
GYNs – the span of different organizations and
companies is very far reaching.
SD: Is there anything that could have
prepared you for the incredible growth of
Support The Girls?
DM: Starting any venture requires careful
diligence and an understanding of what the
potential undertaking might be. This was totally
an accident. I understood what I was getting
into, I had an understanding to some degree,
but it’s mind blowing the speed at which this
is changing. Absolutely nothing in my wildest
dreams could have prepared me for this. When
people recognize me in Costco, it’s wild. I’ve had
a lot of interesting opportunities come up, some
of which I have turned down. It all blows my
mind on a daily basis.
SD: You mentioned that you are often
recognized in public from all of the media
attention that Support The Girls has been
receiving. How does it feel to be the face of
this movement?
DM: It doesn’t feel real. I’m happy to help this
cause, but I couldn’t have come up with all of
this on my own. It’s so much bigger than me
and Support the Girls. We have all of these
companies reaching out to us and we are trying
to figure out if there is a way to bring all of the
companies together to strategize. I think about
what it would be like if we could all get on a big
conference call and just talk for hours. This is an
example of how the whole is so much bigger
than the sum of its part.
To be asked to speak on national platforms on
the topics of dignity, homeless and breaking
down taboos, I doesn’t feel real – like pinch me,
when am I waking up? I’m an average, full time
working mom of two kids. There is nothing exotic
or brilliant about me. To have someone who is so
normal be out there talking about these issues is
weird, it really is.
SD: For as much positive feedback as Support
The Girls has received, have you and your
organization faced any backlash?
DM: When the Associated Press did their big
exclusive story, it went out everywhere. And
when people saw the story and heard what we
were doing, a lot of people asked, “Why bras
and tampons, why not shelter and food?”
I don’t have a background in that. I’m not
well positioned to solve those problems.
With Support The Girls, I stumbled upon
something that hit an international nerve. Yes,
it is spreading like wildfire but I feel like I need
to do the best that I can given my limited
resources and empower the most number of
people.
I understand that not all women have periods
and not all people who have periods are
women. Support The Girls has given menstrual
products and bras to transgender men, women
and youth. And when we make a post on social
media about these kinds of donations, we can
see the numbers of likes, of followers drop.
Supporting the transgender community turns
off some religious groups and conservative
people who want to help the homeless
demographic that works for them. For me,
[supporting the transgender community] is part
of being feminist. I want to make sure people
that the people who need these products have
access.