This spring, the Occupy movement plans to take on Bank of America in a protracted, multi-pronged campaign exposing the predatory nature of the giant lending institution’s common practices.
For the last three years Bank of America has been borrowing billions of dollars a day in “emergency lending” from the Federal Reserve at interest rates close to zero. All told, it has taken at least $2 trillion in rolling “emergency” loans since 2008. What does B of A do with that money? Lend it back to US taxpayers at 5 percent interest rates for mortgages and 20 percent or even 25 percent interest rates for credit cards. That’s how Bank of America makes its profits—it lends your money back to you at interest.
In fact, conservatives should be outraged by Bank of America because it is perhaps the biggest welfare dependent in American history, with the $45 billion in bailout money and the $118 billion in state guarantees it has received since 2008 representing just the crest of a veritable mountain of federal bailout support.
Moreover, BoA is facing more than one dozen class-action lawsuits for wrongfully foreclosing on thousands of homeowners across the country. Independent experts estimate that the bank’s electronic foreclosure system, called “robosigning,” may be responsible for illegally forclosing on the homes of 5,000 military members as well as thousands of other US citizens.
The fix is clearly in.
That’s why March 15, April 15 and May 15 will see concerted move our money actions, in which self-organized groups of individuals, community groups, organizations and congregations move their savings and checking accounts out of the big banks, specifically Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo into credit unions and regional lending institutions. It’s an easy way to take a stand against rapacious capitalism. Get more info and tell all your friends.
