The Red Death: Menstruation as a Symbol of Renewal- Part 5.

Pharmaceuticals and women’s bodies is not a new issue, from the Thalidomide tragedy, to HPV, questions around the impact of pharmaceutical drugs on the female reproductive system have risen at various times over the past several decades.
With current concerns about the health implications of the vaccination for covid-19 on the reproductive health of women, part 5 of The Red Death, written in 2017 before the pandemic explores another issue related to reproductive health of women and pharmaceuticals- the vaccination against HPV.
In a documentary released in September 2017 entitled “Sacrificial Virgins”, film maker Joan Shenton traces a thread from the HPV vaccinations currently administered to young girls, back to the 1960s “Thalidomide tragedy” when a drug prescribed to pregnant women resulting in thousands of babies being born with deformities. Shenton travels back further on the cultural timeline to draw parallels with sacrificed virgins from ancient cultures where pre-sexual girls were “chosen” to give their life and autonomy to the king or other important men. Shenton says she chose the title Sacrificial Virgins “because the vaccine is often given to girls before they are sexually active”. (SanVax,Inc.,2017).