The ‘me too.’ movement was founded in 2006 by Tarana Burke to support survivors of sexual violence, particularly young women of color from low-wealth communities, to find pathways to healing. The movement’s vision from the beginning has been to address both the dearth of resources for survivors of sexual violence and to build a robust community of advocates and allies. In October 2017, the movement went global as the #MeToo hashtag went viral and survivors across the world came forward about their experiences with sexual assault.
From #米兔 (translated as "rice bunny,” pronounced as “mi tu”) in China to #Sex4Grades in Kenya to #uykularinkacsin (may you lose sleep) in Turkey, ‘me too.’ transcended national borders.
Tarana Burke has visited many countries since then. And as the ‘me too’ movement has grown, many countries he asked to connect with efforts in the US. Their requests he sparked the vision of a global community that centers survivor leadership through deep cross-country relationship building and practice sharing.