Title
Recognizing Tarana Burke for her tenacity and spirit in creating a platform for empowerment through empathy by spearheading the #MeToo movement, and honoring the "Silence Breakers" for their bravery in creating awareness through sharing stories of sexual harassment, sexual violence, and resilience and for subsequently being named TIME's 2017 Person of the Year.
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WHEREAS, Tarana Burke, a lifelong activist and organizer, started the "Me Too" campaign on social media ten years ago to center the voices and experience of women, and namely women of color, to "radicalize the notion of mass healing", and to create an intersectional space where victims of sexual violence in our most vulnerable communities could be recognized and could build solidarity; and
WHEREAS, Burke has dedicated her life's work to the intersection of social justice and Black arts and culture. Originally from Harlem and Queens, she began her career in Selma, Alabama as a youth worker dedicated to supporting Black children who were survivors of sexual violence; and
WHEREAS, Burke founded Just Be Inc. in 2003 to create programs and systems for women to heal and become empowered in the aftermath of sexual assault, and launched the "Me Too" campaign in 2007, constituting a grassroots forum for survivors of sexual violence to build healing systems and access support in underserved communities that suffered from a lack of rape crisis centers and sexual assault victim advocates; and
WHEREAS, Burke has made substantial contributions to social justice work in the City of Philadelphia, moving to the City in 2008 and working to mobilize and innovative strategies to support young people and survivors of sexual violence. While in Philadelphia, Burke served as a Grant Officer for the American Friends Service Committee, the Managing Director at Art Sanctuary, and a Site Director at Breakthrough Collaborative of Greater Philadelphia, all while continuing to run Just Be Inc.; and
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