Name: Isabel Lan
What is the name of your TAC project? Periodt
Number impacted? 300+
What life-long lesson have you learned from your TAC project?
The most important life-long lesson I have learned from my TAC project was to not give up. There were many obstacles along the way, from receiving no responses from multiple shelters, to having my fundraiser canceled, to Covid. So many times I felt defeated, and wanted nothing more than to give up. However, by sticking with my goals and being determined to do my part and give back to my community, I persevered and accomplished what I had set out to do. While it may not have been exactly what I had planned in the beginning of my TAC, I was still incredibly proud of what I had achieved.
What is the most unexpected or surprising or interesting thing that happened during or as a result of your TAC journey?
One of the most interesting things that happened during my TAC journey was finding out how much people were unaware of period poverty. I, myself was by no means an expert, and through researching the topic, I realized how big the scale of this issue was. I was shocked that I and most other people had not known about how dire the injustices of menstrual equality were, and how much they affected marginalized communities. When I started my TAC, the issue of menstrual equality was a lot smaller in my mind than it was in reality. Realizing how little information was being spread about these problems only made me even more determined to raise awareness and educate myself and others.
Did you face any challenges in executing your TAC in the face of COVID-19? If so, how did you adapt to the new reality of the pandemic?
Unfortunately, quarantine began for my school just a couple of weeks before Earth Day, which was when I was planning on holding the fundraiser to raise money to help buy menstrual products for womxn’s shelters around Houston. Luckily, the first part of my TAC, to raise awareness of ways people could fight for menstrual equality by registering and getting out to vote, had already been completed before Covid hit. In just one day, the club I am currently the president of, Bellaire Young Democrats, helped register 121 new voters and got 181 committed voters. Raising awareness on how menstrual equality and gender justice are always on the ballot was one of the most important aspects of my TAC. Covid changed the way a lot of activism is done nowadays. Despite being unable to rally together in large groups or host in-person events, we now use social media as one of the most important tools to spread knowledge and raise awareness about important issues. Now, I actively use my social media platforms to educate and inform others and myself about injustices that plague the US and the world around us.
