Two of the most influential voices in modern feminism are being recognized. VH1 has announced that “Handmaid’s Tale” author Margaret Atwood and #MeToo founder and activist Tarana Burke will be celebrated at the VH1 Trailblazer Honors. They will join previously announced honorees Ava DuVernay and Nancy Pelosi and performer Rita Ora at the ceremony, which will air on VH1 and Logo on March 8, International Women’s Day.
“Alias Grace,” “Cat’s Eye,” and the “MaddAddam” trilogy are among Atwood’s best-known titles. She has received the PEN Pinter Prize, the Booker Prize, and many other accolades for her writing, which includes fiction, poetry, and essays. A dystopian cautionary tale about what the United States would look like if it stripped women of all their rights, “The Handmaid’s Tale” was adapted for a Hulu series. The third season of the Elisabeth Moss-starrer arrives in June. “The Testaments,” the sequel to “The Handmaid’s Tale,” will be published September 10. It picks up 15 years after the events of the original.
Sarah Polley adapted “Alias Grace” for a 2017 Netflix/CBC miniseries. “American Psycho” director Mary Harron helmed the project.
Burke has been fighting for social justice for over 25 years. She created Me Too in 2006. With the #MeToo hashtag, the grassroots effort became part of the everyday conversation after the Harvey Weinstein revelations exposed the insidiousness of sexual abuse in and out of Hollywood. Burke has also spearheaded several campaigns aiming to address sexual violence and other systemic inequalities affecting marginalized communities, particularly black women and girls.
Last year Burke was honored at Variety’s annual Power of Women: New York event. She and other women and men who spoke out about sexual harassment and abuse, dubbed “The Silence Breakers,” were named Time’s Person of the Year 2017.
