Thursday marks nine years since #MeToo movement goes viral

(CBS, KYMA) - Thursday, October 15, 2026, marks nine years since the #MeToo movement went viral.

The social media movement, which went viral after actress Alyssa Milano shared it on Twitter, reached dozens of countries and millions of people.

Twitter confirmed to CBS News, at the time, that over 1.7 million tweets included the hashtag "#MeToo," with 85 countries that had at least 1,000 #MeToo tweets.

The hashtag quickly went viral in the wake of dozens of sexual harassment and assault accusations against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein.

On Oct. 15, Milano shared a tweet explaining that if people who have been sexually assaulted or harassed, tweet "me too," it might "give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem."

Millions responded, including high-profile celebrities like America Ferrera, Rose McGowan, Evan Rachel Wood, Gabrielle Union and more.

The movement was actually created nearly 20 years ago by black female activist Tarana Burke. She told Ebony she came up with it in 2007 to let young women of color who survive sexual assault know that they are not alone.

"It wasn't built to be a viral campaign or a hashtag that is here today and forgotten tomorrow," Burke said. "It was a catchphrase to be used from survivor to survivor to let folks know that they were not alone and that a movement for radical healing was happening and possible."

The allegations against Weinstein have also opened up a wider discussion about sexual assault in Hollywood, prompting many stories to surface about other media power players who allegedly assaulted or harassed women, like Bill O'Reilly, Amazon Studios executive Roy Price and director James Toback, as well as in other industries.