Arguably the most powerful awareness campaign in history, #MeToo did not originate in a boardroom. It began with one survivor, Tarana Burke, and exploded when survivors on social media realized that their isolated experiences were actually a systemic pandemic. By simply adding the phrase "Me too" to their statuses, millions of people turned a hashtag into a global reckoning.
The non-profit world has a dark secret: many organizations have historically expected survivors to share their trauma for free, as a "donation of time." This is unethical. If a campaign has a budget for lighting, cameras, and graphic designers, it has a budget to compensate survivors for their labor and emotional risk. Record Of Rape A Shoplifted Woman -Final- -Lept...
When we build awareness campaigns around those moments of authentic vulnerability, we do more than raise awareness. We build a bridge. On one side stands a person suffering in silence. On the other side stands a community ready to help. The survivor who crosses that bridge, and turns back to light the way for others, is not just a victim who survived. Arguably the most powerful awareness campaign in history,