FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 22, 2023

Contact:
Ana Velasquez
PR and Online Harassment Coordinator
[email protected]

(New York, NY.) Right To Be has received $250.000 of new funding from Craig Newmark Philanthropies to combat online harassment through improvements to its Storytelling platform, a unique tool where people can share their experiences with harassment and receive support from a community of vetted bystanders. This significant funding will also allow Right To Be to continue to support journalists experiencing online harassment and reach the next generation of media workers by bringing e-learning about bystander intervention to universities and journalism departments.  

“It’s rare to find a foundation that deeply understands the impact of online harassment on our democracy. It’s even rarer to find a foundation eager to invest in new solutions — like crowdsourcing care for people harassed online — that we can test and learn from. Craig Newmark Philanthropies does both. They will not rest until we identify viable solutions to online harassment, and we couldn’t be more proud to partner with them,” said Emily May, President and Co-Founder of Right To Be. 

Thanks to this support, Right To Be will be able to continue to combat online harassment by:

• Iterating the platform based on the needs of female and gender-expansive journalists
• Training more people for free in bystander intervention online through a free e-learning.
• Engaging with universities and tech conferences to present Right To Be’s Storytelling platform and advocate for bystander intervention

In an evaluation program conducted in 2021, 64% of people who have experienced harassment reported that the platform was very helpful or somewhat helpful in making them feel connected to, and supported by, others.

“Online harassment is a real problem, and the Right To Be people are working on real solutions, so they have my serious support,” said Craig Newmark. 

This is the third consecutive year that Craig Newmark Philanthropies has awarded a grant to support Right To Be’s efforts to combat online harassment. 

Thanks to this generous support, Right To Be was able to redesign and improve its storytelling platform and relaunch it in March 2023. On the platform, people experiencing online harassment can receive support and help others by sending messages of support or documenting or reporting abuse on social media platforms. Journalists can also create a special  “journalist account” and tag their stories as journalists to receive support from the community and other colleagues. 

Right To Be began in 2005 as a blog to collect stories of street harassment. The organization kept documenting stories, but also evolved into a full-scale organization working to create a world that is free of harassment and filled with humanity. Right To Be has collected more than 32,000 stories of harassment and has trained over 1.4 million people across the globe on how to intervene when harassment happens. 

This funding will enable Right To Be to continue to be a pioneer in ending harassment and building a world where everyone has a right to be who they are, wherever they are. 

About Right To Be 

Right To Be is a people-powered movement working to build a world free of harassment and filled with humanity. We are a team of educators, motivators, and facilitators who are listening, guiding, and cheering you on. Every day, we train hundreds of people to respond to, intervene in, and heal from harassment. We hold space for people experiencing harassment to share their stories for affirmation and support. And we prepare new leaders to create workplaces, schools, and communities around the world that are filled with humanity. For more information on how you can get involved, visit www.righttobe.org. Follow Right To Be on Twitter and Facebook at, @righttobeorg.

About Craig Newmark Philanthropies

Craig Newmark Philanthropies was created by craigslist founder Craig Newmark to support and connect people and drive broad civic engagement. It works to advance grassroots organizations that are getting stuff done in areas that include trustworthy journalism & the information ecosystem, voter protection, gender diversity in technology, and veterans & military families. For more information, please visit: CraigNewmarkPhilanthropies.org.