The Tara Foundation was a charity organization dedicated to the support of low-income

Poverty

Poverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...

 and disabled

Disability

A disability may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these.Many people would rather be referred to as a person with a disability instead of handicapped...

 transsexual people.

Origins

The foundation was started in 2001 with the assistance of a $10,000 grant from the Marin Community Foundation. As of April 2008, the Foundation appears to be defunct.

Focus

The main focus of the Tara Foundation was to provide financial assistance to both transsexual

Transsexualism

Transsexualism is an individual's identification with a gender inconsistent or not culturally associated with their biological sex. Simply put, it defines a person whose biological birth sex conflicts with their psychological gender...

 male-to-female women and transsexual female-to-male men for sex reassignment surgery

Sex reassignment surgery

Sex reassignment surgery is a term for the surgical procedures by which a person's physical appearance and function of their existing sexual characteristics are altered to resemble...

. Specifically, this assistance was aimed at disabled and low-income transsexual individuals. The Foundation stated that most insurance companies

Health insurance

Health insurance is insurance against the risk of incurring medical expenses among individuals. By estimating the overall risk of health care expenses among a targeted group, an insurer can develop a routine finance structure, such as a monthly premium or payroll tax, to ensure that money is...

 do not cover transsexual related treatments and maintained that the procedures are "medically necessary and life-changing" as opposed to elective

Elective surgery

Elective surgery is surgery that is scheduled in advance because it does not involve a medical emergency...

 or cosmetic.

The foundation also advocated the advancement of civil rights

Civil rights

Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...

 for transgender people, social acceptance, and the elimination of discrimination

Discrimination

Discrimination is the prejudicial treatment of an individual based on their membership in a certain group or category. It involves the actual behaviors towards groups such as excluding or restricting members of one group from opportunities that are available to another group. The term began to be...

toward transgender people.