Gina Rodriguez made headlines when she lent her Golden Globe dress to a girl for her high school prom, and then again when she used her Emmy campaign stipend to fund a college scholarship for a young undocumented woman, now the “Jane the Virgin” actress wants to help even more young women by helping to provide period products for those who don’t have access to them.
“I was like, ‘Hold up.’ I read about this around the world and I’m not unaware those problems exist in America, but one in five is outrageous. One in five is so many,” she said. “During an age that is a transformative, precious time surrounded by insecurities and vulnerabilities and fear when you’re coming into your body, your shape, your womanhood — and to add this. It was heartbreaking.
Rodriguez has teamed up with Always for their #EndPeriodPoverty campaign, which aims to donate 15 million period products to girls in need. She told CBS News that when she heard one in five American girls misses school due to a lack of period protection, she knew she had to do something.
Although she grew up in a socioeconomically challenged household, she can’t imagine not having access to period products. She has always felt strongly about watching out for other women, and that sharing her success is very fulfilling. She emphasized that what she’s doing isn’t “anything to praise” and that she derives great joy from her ability to help others.
“It’s incredible people even care when I say something that matters to me or I speak up about a cause – that matters to me,” she said. “It makes my heart grow to know I’m not alone in any of these fights or any of these efforts.”
Those efforts include increasing Latino representation on screen. Rodriguez penned an op-ed in January decrying the underrepresentation of Latinos in Hollywood, and she said she’s trying to change that.
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