The Levi Strauss Foundation is a left-of-center grantmaking organization located in San Francisco California. It is the corporate philanthropic arm of and primarily funded by clothing company Levi Strauss & Co.

The Levi Strauss Foundation was founded in 1952 as an institution to house Levi Strauss & Co.’s charitable giving. ¹ It has provided funding to a variety groups and causes, usually left-of-center in nature; following the election of President Donald Trump, the foundation has launched initiatives to support specific groups that it believes are endangered by the President’s policies. ^{2 3}

Funding

In 2017 the Levi Strauss Foundation reported $8,316,867 in earnings, of which $6,055,630 was in the form of donations and $2,531,578 in the form of dividends and interest. ⁴

Levi Strauss & Co. provides the majority of the funding for the Levi Strauss Foundation; in 2017, the foundation’s tax return showed that the company gave $6.24 million of the Foundation’s $6.25 million in contribution revenues. ⁵ Activities

The Levi Strauss Foundation classifies its grantmaking in four specific areas: HIV/AIDS response, worker rights and well-being, social justice, and employee engagement and disaster relief. ⁶  The foundation makes grants to a wide variety of organizations in the San Francisco area, the United States, and around the world. Following the election of President Trump, the foundation launched a special $1 million initiative aimed at support for transgender people, Muslims and South Asian Americans, and immigrants, including undocumented immigrants. ⁷

Groups receiving grants under this new initiative included the San Francisco chapter of the controversial Muslim advocacy organization Council on Islamic-American Relations (CAIR) and various groups supporting illegal immigrants such as Define American, Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, and United We Dream. ⁸

Leadership

Daniel Lee is the Foundation’s executive director and runs its day-to-day operations. At a philanthropy summit in Australia held in 2017, Lee described Levi Strauss holding a townhall meeting two days after the election of President Trump to address concerns. According to Lee, the foundation’s board convened multiple times after the election and the beginning of the Trump administration to figure out strategy. Lee described a “war room” being set up the second week of the administration to deal with Trump’s controversial executive orders restricting immigration. ⁹

1. “Levi Strauss & Co. Timeline.” Accessed February 19, 2019. https://www.levistrauss.com/our-story/heritage-timeline/heritage-timeline-2/.
2. In Conversation with Daniel Lee (Levi Strauss Foundation), 2017. https://youtu.be/HXmG7LVI4n0.
3. Staff. “Levi Strauss Foundation Pledges $1 Million To Protect Marginalized Communities.” Unzipped Blog (blog). Accessed April 5, 2019. https://www.levistrauss.com/2017/05/17/foundation-1-million-marginalized-communities/.
4. Levi Strauss Foundation, Return of a Private Foundation (Form 990 PF), 2017, Part I
5. Levi Strauss Foundation, Return of a Private Foundation (Form 990 PF), 2017, Part I and Schedule B.
6. “Levi Strauss Foundation.” Accessed February 18, 2018. https://www.levistrauss.com/levi-strauss-foundation/.
7. In Conversation with Daniel Lee (Levi Strauss Foundation), 2017. https://youtu.be/HXmG7LVI4n0.
8. Staff. “Levi Strauss Foundation Pledges $1 Million To Protect Marginalized Communities.” Unzipped Blog (blog). Accessed April 5, 2019. https://www.levistrauss.com/2017/05/17/foundation-1-million-marginalized-communities/.
9. In Conversation with Daniel Lee (Levi Strauss Foundation), 2017. https://youtu.be/HXmG7LVI4n0.