Sanitary pad makers sue Ohio magazine over published letter saying product carried COVID
A Georgia maker of sanitary pads accused an Ohio-based magazine of libel when it published a letter that linked the product to the coronavirus vaccination. Patti Sapone | NJ Advance Media
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The manufacturers of an all-natural women’s sanitary pad sued an Ohio-based magazine in federal court over a conspiracy-laden anonymous letter it published that said the pads secretly transmitted the coronavirus vaccine.
Atlanta-based Jewel Sanitary Napkins LLC., which makes sanitary pads under the brand REIGN, filed the lawsuit in federal court in Cleveland against the Millersburg-based Motherhood Magazine.
The lawsuit says the letter caused a significant drop in sales of the product, particularly in Amish communities.
“When I saw this article, I felt utter disappointment” Jewel CEO Demond Crump said. “Our Amish distributors were believing these lies. This type of article can wipe out our entire market share in the Amish community, and we are taking such a big hit.
cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer reached out to Sprigs Life Inc., which owns the magazine.
Jewel’s attorney, Amanda Hyland, said she hopes the lawsuit ends the unfounded belief in the Amish community.
“I’m stunned that any publication would publish something so obviously false, and then act with such indifference when asked to retract it,” Hyland said.
Motherhood Magazine publishes quarterly and caters in part to Amish women, the lawsuit said. In its summer 2022 edition, the magazine published a short, anonymous letter titled, “A Letter from Mom-to-Mom” about the product.
It issued a “warning” about the REIGN pads and that the product used “heavy metals” that are similar to ingredients in the COVID-19 vaccine, according to the lawsuit.
“It seems some people are determined to get that vaccine in us,” the letter said. “Please! Let’s do not intentionally give in to the vaccines if it goes against our standards.”
The letter urged people to “do your research.”
The lawsuit said the sanitary pads use graphene strips, which are not considered heavy metals. They are antimicrobial and safe.
“Graphene is not a metal, does not contain metals and has not been shown, ever, to cause harm when it is applied near or on the body,” the lawsuit said. “And it should go without saying, but no sanitary napkin, including those made by Jewel, can deliver any type of vaccine to the woman using it.”
Crump said the magazine never reached out to his company before publishing the letter.
“They never called us. They never asked if we wanted to defend this,” Crump said. “There isn’t any other company they would do this to.”
The lawsuit accuses the magazine of publishing the letter without any regard for truth and would have been “immediately recognizable” to any newspaper or magazine publisher that the letter was “conspiratorial, false, and defamatory.”
Jewel officials reached out to the magazine and asked for it to retract the letter or issue a correction. Magazine officials refused, and they said in a letter to the company that “Motherhood Magazine has made you money” and that the company would have to “take the good with the bad,” according to the lawsuit.
After the letter published, REIGN sales dropped by about 50 percent. Several distributors told Jewel officials that Motherhood Magazine readers asked them to stop selling the products.
The lawsuit said the loss of sales to the Amish community has put the company on the brink of collapse.
“I just want to dispel the lies and the rumors,” Crump said. “Maybe once this is over, we’ll be able to show the Amish community that graphene is not a metal and that it is not harmful. We need them to understand that our products don’t have any COVID vaccines in them.”
Read more from cleveland.com:
Will Larry Householder take the stand in HB6 corruption trial? Should he?
Ex-Pepper Pike rabbi caught in underage sex sting gets prison time
Cleveland schools to pay $120,000 to settle lawsuits involving ex-security guard who sexually abused East Tech students
If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. By browsing this site, we may share your information with our social media partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.