Donations Instead Of Gifts: 12 Charities To Help This Holiday

HOLLYWOOD,CA – SEPTEMBER 30: Actress Rosie O’Donnell and Kelli Carpenter with their award on stage at the Lambda Legal Liberty Awards honoring Rosie O’Donnell at the Egyptian Theatre on September 30, 2004 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

3. Lambda Legal

Cause: LGBT rights

Why Choose This Charity: Lambda Legal is an American civil rights organization that focuses on defending the rights of LGBT Americans as well as people living with HIV/AIDS. To that end, Lambda Legal focuses on litigation, community education, and public policy work to achieve its goals.

Founded in 1973, Lambda Legal is the oldest and largest organization in the U.S. to focus on the legal rights of LGBT Americans. They receive no government funding and do not charge their legal clients for representation. As a result, donations are especially necessary for this organization.

Their legal battles are selected to do the most work in advancing LGBT rights. These include cases focusing on employment, family legislation, immigration, healthcare, and more. They also provide assistance to LGBT immigrant communities and transgender people.

Now is an especially scary time for people in the LGBT community. Several members of the incoming presidential administration, including vice president-elect Pence, are particularly unfriendly to LGBT rights. It’s likely that we’ll see numerous legal challenges in the coming four years and beyond. Also likely is the chance that we’ll see Lambda Legal and other advocacy organizations at the forefront of rights for LGBT people and other Americans.

Links to Send Gift Givers: Their donation page here.