Life

Where To Donate On The Fourth Of July

by Brandi Neal
Astrid Riecken/Getty Images News/Getty Images

If you're part of team resistance, then you know that the Fourth Of July can be a day of action. If you want to help, there are some places to donate on the Fourth of July that will help you support the resistance and assist people who are part of communities that are being marginalized and discriminated against.

For instance: Women still don't have equal rights, LGBTQ freedoms are under threat, people with disabilities are being dragged away from peaceful protests, literally, and Donald Trump is president. If you're going to celebrate July 4, that's fine of course — by all means, party to your heart's content — but it's also worth spending some extra money apart from celebrations, and considering giving back to organizations working to secure, and protect, the rights of marginalized communities.

An America where the press is not free to report on what's happening in Washington, D.C., where journalists are being jailed and assaulted, where unarmed people are being shot by police, where transgender people are being stripped of their rights, where millions stand to lose their access to healthcare is not a free America. Fourth of July can be a great day of action if we make it one.

Here are some organizations that need your help.

Planned Parenthood

Planned Parenthood provides healthcare to millions of women. I relied on them heavily for my healthcare needs when I didn't have health insurance after college. The Trump administration's efforts to defund PP are real, and every dollar counts. Consider setting up a monthly donation — even if you can only give $5.

Donate to Planned Parenthood.

PEN Center USA

PEN Center USA’s mission is to stimulate and maintain interest in the written word, to foster a vital literary culture, and to defend freedom of expression. PEN, which relies on donations and grants, works to free imprisoned journalists around the world, and offers fellowships to marginalized writers through its Emerging Voices program, a literary mentorship that aims to provide new writers who are isolated from the literary establishment with the tools, skills, and knowledge they need to launch a professional writing career. With journalistic free speech under threat, fighting for First Amendment rights is more important than ever.

Donate to PEN Center USA.

Lambda Legal

A national nonprofit organization committed to achieving full recognition of the civil rights of marginalized communities, Lambda Legal fights for lesbians, gay men, bisexual people, transgender people, and those living with HIV through impact litigation, education, and public policy work. They are currently advocating for transgender students who have experienced discrimination at school.

Donate to Lambda Legal.

Southern Poverty Law Center

The Southern Poverty Law Center is dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry, and to seeking justice for society's most vulnerable members. Using litigation, education, and other forms of advocacy, the SPLC works toward making equal justice, and equal opportunity, for everyone a reality.

The SPLC has initiated lawsuits that have toppled institutional racism; destroyed some of the nation’s most violent white supremacist groups; and protected the civil rights of children, women, the disabled, immigrants and migrant workers, the LGBTQIA+ community, prisoners, and many others who faced discrimination, abuse, or exploitation.

Donate to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

She Should Run

I think we can all agree we need more women in public office. She Should Run seeks to expand the talent pool of women running for office in the United States by providing community, resources, and growth opportunities for aspiring political leaders.

Donate to She Should Run.

Mercy For The Animals

You might be asking what an animal protection organization has to do with resisting Trump. If you've watched Cowspiracy or What The Health on Netflix then you know that agriculture, aside from being inhumane, is the biggest contributor to global warming and environmental destruction. Mercy For Animals is fighting to protect farm animals. From factory farms to corporate boardrooms, courts of justice to courts of public opinion, they're committed to speaking up against cruelty and for compassion.

Donate to Mercy For Animals.

Americans For Immigrant Justice

American Immigrants for Justice protects basic human rights of immigrants, and offers services, legal support to ensure immigrants are not subjected to abuse or injustice; are not afraid to seek help; have a fair opportunity to make their case in the system that governs them; and have their contributions valued, and encouraged.

Donate to Americans for Immigrant Justice.

The Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund

You may have seen the video of peaceful protestors being dragged from outside Sen. Mitch McConnell's after the healthcare bill was revealed. This is completely unacceptable. The Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, founded in 1979, is a leading national civil rights law and policy center directed by individuals with disabilities and parents who have children with disabilities. They work to advance the civil and human rights of people with disabilities through legal advocacy, training, education, and public policy, and legislative development.

Donate to the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund.

Black Lives Matter

Black Lives Matter is a call to action and a response to the virulent anti-Black racism that permeates society. A chapter-based national organization working for the validity of black lives, they are working to (re)build the Black liberation movement. Black Lives Matter affirms the lives of black queer and trans people, disabled people, black-undocumented immigrants, people with records, women, and all black lives along the gender spectrum.

Donate to Black Lives Matter.

Native American Rights Fund

Since 1971, the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) has provided legal assistance to Native American tribes, organizations, and individuals in the United States who may have otherwise gone without adequate representation. NARF has successfully asserted and defended the most important rights of Native Americans and tribes in hundreds of major cases, and has achieved significant results in such critical areas as tribal sovereignty, treaty rights, natural resource protection, and education.

Donate to the Native American Rights Fund.