In it to win it
3rd January 2012 · 0 Comments
By Edmund W. Lewis
Editor
Very few conscious Black people were surprised by the recent news that Black and Latino homebuyers were being routinely treated unfairly by Countrywide Financial, a subsidiary of Bank of America, during the housing boom.
A Justice Department investigation concluded last month that Countrywide loan officers and brokers charged higher fees and rates to more than 200,000 borrowers of color across the nation than to white borrowers who posed the same credit risk. Countrywide also reportedly steered more than 10,000 Black and Latino borrowers into costly subprime mortgages when white borrowers with similar credit profiles received regular loans, federal investigators concluded.
As a result of the probe, Bank of America agreed to pay a $355 million penalty, the largest residential fair-lending settlement in U.S. history.
Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said late last month that the settlement showed that the Justice Department would “vigorously pursue those who would take advantage of certain Americans because of their race, national origin, gender or disability.
“Such conduct undercuts the notion of a level playing field for all consumers. It betrays the promise of equal opportunity that is enshrined in our Constitution and our legal framework.”
While it’s gratifying to know that sometimes the good guys do win, it’s disturbing to think that in the 21st century there are still people in positions of power who see absolutely nothing wrong with robbing people blind in the name of profit. But the folks engaged in corporate skulduggery and chicanery are anything but colorblind.
Despite the declaration that the election of President Barack Obama ushered in a new, “post-racial” era in America, somebody sitting behind a desk somewhere is still deciding that there’s absolutely nothing wrong with stealing not only the hard-earned savings but also the hopes and dreams of countless families of color because they were born with Black or brown skin.
It wasn’t a computer glitch or an error on the part of a handful of Countrywide employees that got Bank of America into trouble with the Justice Department. This was a concerted effort agreed upon by those in positions of power. The guilty parties saw nothing wrong with exploiting Black and Latino families while giving white families every possible chance to achieve the American Dream.
Knowing it happens is one thing but actually reading the unsavory details of how these racist schemes are carried out is an entirely different thing altogether.
Sadly, what happened at Countrywide happens every day at insurance companies, where Black and Latino policyholders are sometimes forced to pay “skin taxes,” and with financial entities like credit card companies and lending institutions.
It also happens every day in local, state and national government with elected officials creating laws and establishing policies that give one group of people an unfair advantage over all others.
We see it here in New Orleans in the way white and affluent neighborhoods across the city are given better amenities than communities where many of the residents are Black and poor. We also see it in the decisions elected officials make regarding standardized testing in public schools, the rebuilding of public schools and hospitals, and the destruction of historically and culturally significant Black neighborhoods in the name of profit, progress and convenience.
Despite claims to the contrary by those with decision-making power and those who benefit from the color of their skin, we know that these things are happening every day. Don’t let any elected official or politrickster use Jedi mind tricks to try to convince you that he or she has your best interests at heart when every decision he or she makes is proving to be detrimental to the growth and development of your community. Trust your instincts and get involved in efforts to make life better for all segments of New Orleans, not just those with the right uniform or those who hear the cries for justice, democracy and fairness and say nothing but “Let them eat king cake.”
It is sometimes tempting to become discouraged when we see the powers that be completely ignoring the needs and concerns of those who are on the outside looking in. But we can’t allow ourselves to be taken out of the struggle to ensure that every human being who lives in this city, state and nation is granted justice, “equal protection under the law” and an opportunity to “secure the blessings of liberty” for themselves and their posterity.
It would be easy to become disillusioned and give up on efforts to make sure that this nation and its government live up to the words so eloquently written in its constitution. Some of those who once were committed to fighting the good fight and helping those who have been historically exploited and oppressed in the U.S. have lost all hope of effecting change and opted instead to give up, sell out or completely remove themselves from the equation by committing “slow suicide” in one form or another.
Part of the challenge of being actively involved in the struggle is centered around connecting with like-minded individuals and organizations that share your commitment to making life better for those less fortunate, finding creative ways to keep the flames of freedom burning brightly and replenishing your spirit whenever things in this city, state and nation take a turn for the worse.
One thing that should keep us going when things get rough is the knowledge that we are the proud descendants of the first people to walk on the planet, brave, courageous ancestors who refused to die and did not know what it meant to give up. It was their resilience, courage and many sacrifices that made our survival possible. We owe it to them to carry on that freedom-fighting tradition even in the darkest of times.
For those whose sense of purpose, commitment to justice and unrelenting will to right the wrongs of the past and present will not let them abandon the struggle, I have a simple message: Fight on.
All power to the people.
This article was originally published in the January 2, 2012 edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper
