A biography for Tarana Burkehasn’t been written yet.
“We have to come together and speak honestly about what the barriers are within our community - and then tear them down. It's really that simple.”
“Black women have been screaming about famous predators like R&B singer R. Kelly, who allegedly preys on black girls, for well over a decade to no avail.”
“I founded the Me Too Movement because there was a void in the community that I was in. There were gaps in services. There was dearth in resources, and I saw young people - I saw black and brown girls - who are hurting and who needed something that just wasn't there.”
“I'm driven by the gaps, the things that are missing, the areas where marginalized people exist - and where the least resources are available for them.”
“I've never had a person come to me and say, 'I want to take down this person.' They come and say, 'I need help. This thing is killing me. It's weighing me down. It's sitting in the pit of my stomach.'”
“Anita Hill thanklessly put herself and her career as a law professor on the line more than 25 years ago to publicly name Clarence Thomas for sexually harassing her at work.”
“I want survivors to know that healing is possible.”
“People ask me what men can do, and I tell them, even if you're not a perpetrator, you should believe women - or queer folks - when they say that they have been violated.”
“The work is more than just about the amplification of survivors and quantifying their numbers. The work is really about survivors talking to each other and saying, 'I see you. I support you. I get it.'”
“Get up. Stand up. Speak up. Do something.”
“I'm interested in talking to people and dealing with people who are set and ready for change and action. Who get it. And who are looking for solutions.”
“I've done work in every area of social justice you can think of, but I've been highly focused on young people and then specifically black and brown girls.”
“I have been working with young people for more than 25 years.”
“There is always a way to get what you need, and I really believe in taking what you have to make what you need.”
“Inherently, having privilege isn't bad, but it's how you use it, and you have to use it in service of other people.”
“Part of the job is to find out what they need. #MeToo is about helping people find those resources.”
“Patriarchy doesn't just make men out to be ogres. Women buy into the patriarchy as well, and women make those comments as well, like, 'Boys will be boys.' Women have to undo that stuff, too.”
“There's a power in empathy.”
“As a community, we create a lot of space for fighting and pushing back, but not enough for connecting and healing.”
“I think it is selfish for me to try to frame Me Too as something that I own. It is bigger than me and bigger than Alyssa Milano. Neither one of us should be centered in this work. This is about survivors.”