User:Hope with Time's Up/Time's Up Legal Defense Fund Draft

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The Time's Up Legal Defense Fund is operated separately by the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC), and was established as a partnership between Time's Up leaders and the NWLC.[1] The legal defense fund provides legal and media support to individuals who have been subject to workplace sex discrimination, such as sexual harassment.[2] It was co-founded by lawyers Kaplan and Tchen[3][4] in partnership with the NWLC, which both houses and administers the fund.[2][1] The legal defense fund's director is Sharyn Tejani.[5]

The legal defense fund assists individuals by connecting them with local legal counsel who can apply for support from the fund to cover the costs of taking on a case.[6] The initiative has a network of lawyers who have offered to provide assistance, including some working at discounted rates or pro bono.[7] In its first year, the fund received 3,755 inquiries from individuals looking for help taking on their case, had gathered a network of 792 lawyers who were able to offer free consultation, and had funded 75 legal cases.[2] By early 2021, it had funded the legal cases of 250 individuals.[5] According to Time's Up's 2020 Annual Report, the fund had assisted a total of 4,800 individuals with legal representation and provided media help in 300 legal cases. In legal cases that had concluded, 90% of those funded by Time's Up had resulted in a positive outcome for the individuals supported by the fund.[8]

The fund concentrates on providing legal support to those within lower-wage industries.[9] In 2018, about 40% of those requesting help from the fund were women of color and 65% of them were low-income, from industries like construction, food services, and the military.[4]

It also provides grants to fund education about legal rights and resources. It funded 18 outreach grants totaling $750,000 in 2018,[2] with recipients including the YWCA Greater Los Angeles.[10]

The initiative is funded by direct donations and through donations to the Time's Up organization.[11] The initial fundraising GoFundMe campaign for the legal defense fund in 2018 received $21 million in two months and was the most successful campaign on the site at the time.[12]

References

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  1. ^ a b Holloway, Daniel; Chuba, Kirsten (September 25, 2018). "Inside Time's Up Entertainment's Plan to Take on Sexism in Hollywood". Variety. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d Grady, Constance (January 16, 2019). "Time's Up was at the center of the 2018 Golden Globes. One year later, what has come of it?". Vox. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  3. ^ Coleman, Justine (2019-10-07). "Former Michelle Obama chief of staff Tina Tchen named new head of Time's Up". TheHill. Retrieved 2019-10-24.
  4. ^ a b Walters, Joanna (October 21, 2018). "#MeToo a revolution that can't be stopped, says Time's Up co-founder". the Guardian. Retrieved October 21, 2018.
  5. ^ a b Schmidt, Samantha (February 8, 2021). "She reported sexual harassment by a former supervisor — and was fired soon after". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  6. ^ Blair, Elizabeth (March 11, 2018). "Here's How The Time's Up Legal Defense Fund Actually Works". NPR. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  7. ^ Buckley, Cara (February 20, 2019). "Time's Up a Year Later: Hollywood Women Test Their Clout". The New York Times. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  8. ^ "Time's Up 2020 Annual Report" (PDF). timesupnow.org. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  9. ^ Flynn, Caitlin (January 1, 2020). "TIME'S UP 2nd Anniversary Falls Just Before Harvey Weinstein's Trial, Symbolizing the Work to Come". Teen Vogue. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  10. ^ James, Meg (October 25, 2018). "Time's Up has kept #MeToo in the spotlight and raised $22 million. Now it wants leadership and focus". L.A. Times. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  11. ^ Maddaus, Gene (December 22, 2020). "Time's Up Financial Reports Show Growth, Detail CEO Severance". Variety. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  12. ^ Langone, Alix (March 8, 2018). "#MeToo and Time's Up Founders Explain the Difference Between the 2 Movements — And How They're Alike". TIME. Retrieved March 10, 2021.