Is Levi Strauss & Co. Woke?

Is Levi Strauss & Co. Woke in 2026?

By the criteria this index measures, yes — and unlike the many corporations that scaled back DEI between 2024 and 2026, Levi Strauss & Co. has publicly held its ground. At the company's April 23, 2025 annual meeting, roughly 99% of shareholders voted down a proposal from the National Center for Public Policy Research asking the board to consider abolishing its DEI programs, as reported by ESG Dive. CEO Michelle Gass said the company has been "committed to diversity and inclusion for literally decades, and it's the core to who we are." NCPPR, for its part, argued such programs carry "legal, reputational and cultural risks."

The LGBTQ record is equally current. Weeks after that vote, Levi's released a 2025 Pride collection featuring the pink triangle — timing Newsweek framed as coming "after refusing to eliminate DEI programs." For 2026, the company says it is again sponsoring the San Francisco Pride Parade and World Pride Amsterdam, funding Outright International, The Trevor Project and the Human Rights Campaign, and cites a perfect score on HRC's Corporate Equality Index for 22 consecutive years, according to its own June 2026 announcement.

Older flashpoints remain on the record: in 2018 the company launched its Safer Tomorrow Fund, pledging more than $1 million to gun-violence-prevention groups and partnering with Michael Bloomberg and Everytown for Gun Safety, a move that drew boycott calls from gun-rights advocates at the time, as The Hill reported.

Levi Strauss & Co. scores 100/100 on the BuyWokeFree index — a rating that reflects this cumulative multi-year record of DEI programs, ongoing Pride sponsorships, perfect HRC scores and gun-control activism, all of which remain active as of 2026.

Levi Strauss & Co. is arguably one of the most consistently and aggressively woke major corporations in America. The iconic denim brand publishes detailed sustainability reports with ESG indices aligned to SASB and GRI standards, pursuing 16 ambitious sustainability goals centered on climate and consumption. But it is in the realm of social activism where Levi's truly stands apart from its competitors.

Levi Strauss has achieved a perfect 100% score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index for more than 20 consecutive years — one of the longest unbroken streaks of any company in the nation. The brand sponsors Pride parades from San Francisco to Warsaw, Poland, launches annual LGBTQ+ themed collections, and has publicly joined HRC and GLAAD to "reaffirm commitment to LGBTQIA+ equality." When shareholders introduced a proposal to end DEI programs, the company's board fought it, and shareholders voted it down — a clear signal that woke ideology is baked into Levi's corporate DNA.

Former CEO Chip Bergh was one of the most outspoken corporate advocates for diversity in America, and the company maintains dedicated "Social Justice Action" programs. While Levi's political spending ($45K in contributions, $230K in lobbying) is modest compared to larger corporations, their cultural influence is outsized. Conservative consumers looking for denim should know that every pair of Levi's jeans supports a company that has been at the vanguard of progressive corporate activism for over two decades.