Mark Winston Griffith

Note to self: Banks discriminate

The wind was cold, the faithful were few, the reporters were fewer.

Such was the poetically brave scene on the corner of 49th Street and Madison Avenue this past Sunday. There I stood alongside Congressman Anthony Weiner who was holding a press conference to unveil a report which criticized banks for opening a rush of new branches in affluent neighborhoods while virtually ignoring low-income areas.

In addition to me representing the Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project, the stalwarts who had joined Weiner were City Council member Tish James, Assembly member Karim Camara, Council member Charles Barron, Council member John Liu and my dear friend, Cliff Rosenthal, director of the National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions.

The following are excerpts from a summary of the report released by Weiner's office:

Since 2000, the number of bank branches in New York City increased by 212. But in the midst of this boom, New York City's low-income neighborhoods are being left behind. According to a report, released by Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Brooklyn & Queens) today, over the last five years the 20 wealthiest neighborhoods in this City have gained 53 more banks; while only 3 additional banks stand in the poorest 20...

- In the last year, in neighborhoods where the median income is above $30K, there are 184 more banks, whereas neighborhoods with a median income below $30K, have only gained 28.

- In Brownsville, Brooklyn, which has a median income of just over $20K residents are served by only two banks, down from four in 1995. In, Murray Hill, Manhattan, with a median income of $66K there are 31 banks currently open, which is up from 27...

Although I didn't get to unfurl it, I also had with me a poster-sized map, produced by the Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project (NEDAP), dramatically depicting how banks have stayed out of neighborhoods of color.

Big props to Weiner and crew for taking this issue on. The message couldn't have been clearer: Bank discrimination, almost thirty years after the creation of the Community Reinvestment Act, is alive and well.

In the end, Channel 9 as well as the Daily News, the New York Times and the New York Post covered the event, but rather modestly. It's a damn shame, but maybe getting screwed by banks isn't news anymore.

Mark Winston Griffith: Author Bio | Other Posts
Posted at 10:31 AM, Dec 19, 2005 in Banking
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