BEYOND THE HASHTAG: CELEBRATING FIVE YEARS OF DISRUPTION

2022 marked the 5th Anniversary of #MeToo. It marked five years of advocacy; five years of bold envisioning; and five years of survivors leading the way and endeavoring toward a world free from sexual violence. For us, it was and is imperative that we use this time to look back at this unyielding progress and carve a path forward.

At the Core of Us: me too. International’s Social and Political Framework

At the center of our work sits survivor leaders; leaders who understand the work of disruption, the needs of survivors, and, most importantly, that the path forward can only be achieved when we combine healing and action. With this in mind, we developed and released our social and political framework − our articulation of our fundamental truths and our understanding of the problem impacting us all.

We launched our social and political framework to explore, define, and dissect the many aspects of #MeToo, me too. International, and the broader survivor justice movement. Over the span of four years, we discussed and learned. We conducted numerous surveys and interviews with our communities. In the framework, we debunk myths and answer key questions – “who is me too. International?” and “what is our approach to

The document immerses readers in five key conversations —

1 me too. International’s analysis of the problem

2 A collective envisioning of a world free from sexual violence

3 The work of me too. International

4 The values, principles, and policies me too. International is accountable to as an organization and movement

5 The role of allies

We are proud of what we created in collaboration with our partners, the voices of the survivors who participated in our focus groups and surveys, and of course, the survivors who continue to raise their voices and demand accountability, resources, and material change.

Amplifying on Purpose

On October 18th, we staged guerilla-style video projections on prominent buildings in four U.S. cities − Atlanta, Chicago, New York City, and Philadelphia. The goals for this disruption included: declaring sexual violence a public health crisis; bringing sexual violence survivorship out of the shadows into public spaces; creating urgency and action around the issue of sexual violence prevention and survivor healing and support; and highlighting the ecosystem that creates harm and name the state as an actor in perpetuating it. In collaboration with The BlackOut Collective and local community partners in each city, we accomplished those goals and learned a lot about the crossover dynamic of placing a virtual phenomenon like #MeToo inside of our physical realities.

12 For 12

To kick off the 5th Anniversary of #MeToo going viral, we hosted a 12-minute grounding conversation with ‘me too.’ founder, Tarana Burke, and the founder of SisterSong, Loretta Ross. The conversation was a moment for reflection, affirmation, and activation centered around ending sexual violence and taking action in the survivor justice movement.

Attendees dove deep into conversation during our Philadelphia community dinner, exploring the realities facing survivors in their community and beyond.

Building Survivor Power and Collective Vision in Real Space & Time

Over the past four years, me too. International crafted its programming through virtual and digital offerings to meet the needs of survivors wherever they are. However, as we begin to emerge from a ravaging pandemic into a “new normal,” we experimented with an in-person offering. Conversations Beyond the Hashtag: A ‘me too.’ Community Dinner was hosted in Philadelphia on October 28th. We brought together over 100 local community members into one space to break bread, access resources, and discuss survivor demands.

Our call to action broadcast across the New York State Supreme Court. We chose this location to highlight the critical relationship between systems of power, our legal system, and sexual violence.

Our ‘me too.’ team member Amanda Bonilla joins founder Tarana Burke and Reproductive Justice Foremother Loretta Ross on Instagram Live on the fifth anniversary of #MeToo.