A teenage Kenya student has taken her own life after reportedly being “period shamed” and kicked out of class. 

According to The Daily Nation,14-year-old Jackline Chepngeno hanged herself after being dismissed from class on September 6 after her period stained her clothes. 

The teen’s mother, Beatrice Koech, said her daughter was “humiliated” and called “dirty” after soiling her dress because she didn’t have a sanitary napkin. 

“She had nothing to use as a pad. When the blood stained her clothes, she was told to leave the classroom and stand outside,” Koech said. 

“When police arrived at the scene, they found the girl had committed suicide using a leso and the body was moved to Kapkatet Hospital mortuary,” Konoin Sub-County Police Commander Alex Shikondi said. 

Following the teenager’s death, police used tear gas on about 200 parents who protested outside the school while demanding answers about the case, according to BBC. 

Lilian Cheptiony, a local villager, believes the situation definitely could’ve been prevented by educators. 

“Sadly, we have lost a young promising girl who would have in future made a positive contribution to development in society,” Cheptiony told The Daily Nation. 

Issues surrounding young girls and their menstruation runs deep worldwide with the United Nations reporting that 1 out of 10 girls in sub-Saharan Africa skips classes because of their period. 

According to The Guardian, the financial burden of pads is also to blame as 65% of women and girls can’t afford them in Kenya.

Although the city passed legislation in 2017 to provide all schoolgirls with free pads, the parliamentary committee has yet to implement the measure. 

“When people earn less than two bucks a day, is a family going to [get] bread, milk and food, or a girl’s sanitary pads?” Angela Lagat, chief brand marketing officer at ZanaAfrica said.