The aisle is filled to the brim with colorful pink and purple razors, shaving cream and shampoos. Each has a floral or fruity scent: pink grapefruit, turquoise waters, sweet pea rose. By comparison, the men’s products – with their navy blue and generic scents – are hardly as eye-catching but for some reason the prices are abundantly lower. Imagine being tricked into paying more money for being a girl.

This phenomenon is exactly what is occurring for women and girls trying to buy basic products. They fall into spending more money under what is known as the “pink tax.”

Since the 1990s, there has been increasing attention drawn to the pink tax, also known as gender-based price discrimination. This tax targets menstrual products, women’s clothing, and other products marketed for women due to their uses or colors. 

Light was first brought to the subject nearly 30 years ago  when California passed the state-wide Gender Tax Repeal Act of 1995. The bill established that it was illegal for businesses to charge more money because of a person’s gender. In the years since, the pink tax has become a hot topic amongst women and girls in the United States. 

According to an article published by Sina Gebre-Ab at CBS, “Federally, the ‘Pink Tax Repeal Act’ was introduced in the House in 2021 and is still pending in Congress.” 

The pink tax does not only affect the goods women purchase, but also the services. A hair appointment for a woman costs substantially more than one for a man. Basic hygienic products for women are hiked up in price because retailers know women have to buy them, no matter what. Every month, women experience a period, and retailers keep the prices as high as possible because eventually women will have to buy products. 

Sandra Salathe at Yahoo Finance estimates that women are forced to spend around $20 per cycle just to stay hygienic.

In fact, it has been deemed that “27 out of 50 states still have a tax on tampons and other feminine hygiene products? Deeming tampons and sanitary napkins “unessential,” these states profit an estimated $120 million annually off of women,” Diane Bourdo, president of The Humphreys Group in San Francisco, said in Forbes.

This tax is another small kink in America to enforce the patriarchy and keep men above women. The fact that a woman’s razor costs more than a man’s because it is “pink” or has “bright colors” on it is immature and ridiculous. 

The pink tax is increasing menstrual products, which are an essential for women. Women cannot control their anatomy – nor the fact that they need access to feminine hygiene products on a monthly basis – so why are businesses and the government up-charging them? Up-charging pads and tampons is like up-charging band-aids, a basic helping hand for the human body. 

Some states have taken action against this tax by passing laws banning businesses from charging more for similar products that are marketed to different genders. However, in order for the pink tax to really become less of an issue, there needs to be action on a federal level. A bill was proposed in Congress called the Pink tax Repeal act. But it was never fulfilled or processed. Attention needs to come back to this bill, as  a federal law that businesses may never charge more on the same products that are gender marketed is essential. 

Banning the pink tax will be one small step to poke at the patriarchy.