Ethical Fundraising & Partnerships Policy

Armed conflict and militarized systems disproportionately impact women, girls, and marginalized communities—often fueling sexual violence, displacement, and long-term trauma. In the Caribbean, the legacies of colonization, military intervention, and foreign-backed regimes have left deep scars, particularly in communities already facing racial and economic marginalization. Contemporary forms of militarization—such as over-policing, border securitization, and the import of military-grade weapons into civilian spaces—continue to threaten public safety and community trust.

Accepting support from entities that profit from violence, warfare, or militarized control would directly contradict our commitment to peacebuilding, demilitarized justice, and survivor safety. Life In Leggings envisions a region where security is defined not by force, but by care, equity, and the freedom to live without fear.

Climate change is a gendered crisis—and in the Caribbean, it is an existential one. As a region made up largely of Small Island Developing States (SIDS), the Caribbean is disproportionately vulnerable to climate disasters such as hurricanes, rising sea levels, coastal erosion, and droughts. These events devastate lives and livelihoods, especially among Indigenous, rural, and low-income communities—where women and girls often face the harshest consequences.

Fossil fuel corporations and other climate-harming industries contribute directly to this crisis by driving greenhouse gas emissions, fueling ecological degradation, and displacing communities. Their activities exacerbate the very conditions—poverty, instability, and resource scarcity—that heighten the risk of gender-based violence, particularly in post-disaster settings.

Accepting funding from such actors would be in direct conflict with our climate justice work and our mission to create safer, more resilient communities. Our approach is intersectional and rooted in justice—any partnership must reflect a shared commitment to environmental, gender, and social equity.

Life In Leggings is a nonpartisan organization. While we actively engage with policymakers to advance gender justice, we do not accept funding from political parties or their affiliated entities. Accepting such support risks creating perceived or actual biases, undermining our credibility, and compromising our ability to hold all political actors accountable—regardless of affiliation. 

Remaining nonpartisan also ensures that we can work constructively with the government of the day, regardless of which political party is in power. This independence allows us to engage as a consistent, values-driven stakeholder, advocate for survivors across administrations, and help ensure that critical issues like gender-based violence are not politicized or reduced to party agendas.

Maintaining political neutrality is essential to preserving the trust of survivors, young people, and communities across the Caribbean who count on us to speak truth to power without fear or favor.

While we respect freedom of religion, we cannot accept funding from religious institutions whose teachings or practices marginalize women, girls, LGBTQ+ individuals, or survivors of abuse. In the Caribbean, certain religious groups have used fearmongering and misinformation on public platforms to target LGBTQ+ people, reinforce patriarchal norms, and create unsafe environments—both spiritually and socially.

These institutions have frequently been among the most powerful and vocal opponents of critical human rights protections. Their influence has contributed to the obstruction of progressive legislation, including but not limited to:

• The criminalization of marital rape
• Legal protections against child sexual grooming
• The implementation of Comprehensive Sexuality Education in schools
• The decriminalization of abortion and expansion of reproductive healthcare access
• The inclusion of gender-neutral or LGBTQ+-inclusive language in domestic violence laws—which would protect victims in same-sex relationships
  

Such opposition silences survivors, denies young people access to accurate health information, and undermines bodily autonomy and dignity—particularly for those most marginalized.

At Life In Leggings, we are committed to dismantling the harmful systems that perpetuate violence and inequality. Aligning with institutions that actively promote discrimination would directly contradict our mission and further harm the communities we exist to serve.

Life In Leggings does not accept funding from entities or individuals complicit in modern slavery, apartheid, forced displacement, or any form of structural violence. These violations are not only moral failures—they are direct assaults on human dignity, freedom, and justice. As an organization rooted in survivor-centered, intersectional advocacy, we are committed to building a world where all people can live in safety and self-determination.

In the Caribbean, the legacy of colonialism, chattel slavery, and racial hierarchy continues to shape systems of inequality and exploitation. Contemporary issues such as human trafficking, the abuse of migrant workers, statelessness, and the deportation of vulnerable populations reflect these enduring injustices. The region also continues to experience the global consequences of apartheid-era alliances, forced land removals, and extractive industries that displace Indigenous peoples and rural communities of colour.

Accepting support from actors who perpetrate or enable these harms would be in direct conflict with our values and responsibilities. As part of a global movement for justice and liberation, we recognize that gender justice cannot be achieved in isolation from racial, economic, and environmental justice.

“I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.
And I am not free as long as one person of colour remains chained.
Nor is any one of you.”

— Audre Lorde

We hold ourselves and our partners to the highest standards of human rights, dignity, and accountability.

We do not align ourselves with companies or institutions that have failed to protect its employees, consumers, or stakeholders from gender-based violence, racism, or other forms of abuse. In the Caribbean, persistent issues such as workplace sexual harassment, discriminatory hiring practices, and the exploitation of low-wage workers—particularly women and migrant communities—are often left unaddressed, especially within powerful institutions in both the public and private sectors.

Collaborating with entities that have perpetuated or ignored such harm would undermine our credibility, retraumatize survivors, and erode the hard-earned trust that communities have placed in Life In Leggings. As a survivor-centered organization, we are committed to building partnerships rooted in safety, justice, and accountability—not silence and complicity.