Most Unbanked Blacks in the Country: St. Louis, Missouri.
I'd heard about a report on un- and under- banked people. I didn't realize until I visited home, and picked up a St. Louis American, that the epicenter of underbanking is St. Louis. Of Black homes in St. Louis, Mo, 31% are unbanked! Compare that to 1.1% of whites in St. Louis.
Are you serious????
I can believe it, though. Let me tell you a story about me and a bank: Roosevelt Federal, now U. S. Bank, at the corner of Lucas & Hunt and Natural Bridge.
I had been with this bank, through its many manifestations, since I turned 14. At the time I split with the bank, that made 15 years--longer than anyone who, currently, worked there. Out of a sense of loyalty, nothing more, I kept money in that bank, though I got better returns from other interest bearing accounts. Even after I moved to Chicago, I deposited money frequently--once a month by direct deposit, and twice a month via mail. I considered myself doing them a favor. I know how banks work. They act like they do us a favor, but, really, we're the ones pooling our money together, letting them house it, so they can loan it to other people, and make money off the interest they charge.
There came a time when I had to do a lot of repairs on a property, the mortgage to which I paid out of this account, a mortgage which this bank held. For about four months, that bill would subtract all but a little over a couple hundred dollars from that account. A direct deposit, which arrived two days after the withdrawal, would more than replenish the funds. Little by little, the account was making gains.
My cousin, who had been doing these repairs, and maintaining the property in other ways for years, had been stockpiling the checks I paid him. He had two years worth of uncashed checks, and, one day, he cashed them all. The checks had not all been drawn from this account, but in this account, I had all but $2.00 of what I needed to cover those checks. (I have since learned to pay relatives and give gifts with money orders.)
I did not find out from Roosevelt Federal/U.S. Bank that the account had been overdrawn. During my bi-monthly accounting, I checked the balance to find it a few hundred dollars negative. I hit the roof. I called the bank. My account had been overdrawn for 11 days. They had charged me $35.00 a day for each day overdrawn. I asked them why they hadn't alerted me. I discovered that they had mailed overdraft notice--to the address of the house I grew up in; the address from which I opened the account fifteen years, earlier.
I received mail from this bank at what was my current address, frequently. I had asked them more than once to update my mailing address, and because I received mail at the update address, I believed they had. During this episode, they revealed that they require "official" paperwork to change an address. I'd been receiving mail from them where I lived because they reply to all correspondence at whatever return address is listed on the envelope. When I asked why they had never informed me of the official form, they answered that they could not, of course, account for some teller's oversight. That oversight was costing me over $300.00.
I began a failing campaign to get these fees reversed. Here, I've banked with these people for over a decade. I've never been overdrawn on my account before. I was only overdrawn by $2.00. I never got any notice. Other banks with whom I do business totally forgive one overdraft per year.
Roosevelt Federal/U. S. Bank would only forgive 60% of the fee. They would acknowledge no error, insisting that I should have known that my account was overdrawn. They considered 60% quite generous. That was the maximum they would offer.
Bad business. What was the opportunity cost of not forgiving that overdraft fee? You know I closed that account within 24 hours. They had to refund me money because my regular direct deposit came in hours after I sent the wire transfer and officially closed my account. A 15 year relationship down the tube for $200.00.
I should have known that my account was overdrawn. Maybe. On the other hand, they should have changed my address; then, I would have known. Obviously, notification is important. Otherwise, banks wouldn't incur the expense of contacting people. Moreover, were it not for my accounting, I would not have known, and I was, only, $2.00 short, after my cousin deposited checks that were 2 years old. I had never, ever, in 15 years, bounced anything. On more than one occasion, I had to correct errors in their accounting in relationship to my account. I explained all of this to over a dozen people over the course of twenty four hours, to no avail.
After hours of calling and arguing, the U. S. Banks supervisors were sending my calls directly to voice mail, lying about when they would contact me back, and yelling at me. If I had overdrawn with Chase Bank, they would have mailed me, texted me, e-mailed me, and reversed the charges totally if they were the sole charges that year--not in fifteen years, that year. I warned U. S. Bank that I would close my account immediately if they did not reverse those charges. I conceded that I'd pay $50.00, and not a dime more. They refused. Bad Business.
And not long afterwords, what? Banking industry crash. New legislation preventing these types of fees. I know if I got this treatment, and I'm an articulate, logical, well-financed individual with a flawless 15 year history with the institution, then they dogged the shit out of a bunch of other black folks.
Doing business white folks way. Well, look at the state of this country, today, and tell me where doing business white folks way got folks.
Most people's stories with banks are a lot like mine. They bounce a check or their account gets overdrawn. The fees gather so fast and get so high, the person can never afford to pay them down. How many people have an extra $350.00 laying around to pay on some fees. Some fees? That shit is imaginary. Fees don't correspond to any tangible expense. Shoes. Shoes cost money. They require fabric, thread, cardboard, whatever. Glasses. Glasses cost money. They require glass. Metal. Lenses. Fees? What the fuck did it cost to come up with a fee. And what the fuck do fees do? Spank someone's hand? Generate massive amounts of additional revenue for a bank? Alienate and rupture important consumer relationships?
So the fees accumulate. Once a person gets a bad reputation with one bank, he can hardly get an account at any other bank. Of course, the chips are stacked against the disproportionately poor, because they are least likely to be able to pay the fees or see them reversed.
But who does it hurt that blacks are unbanked? Not the banking industry. Obviously not. Perhaps it hurts in as much as that leaves fewer customers to levy ridiculous fees against, but really, it doesn't hurt them a single bit. It hurts black people that black people are unbanked.
And I don't understand why we don't have more black banks? I don't understand why a mogul doesn't open up a bank? You know? I don't understand why churches don't open banks? Churches are businesses. Black churches, all together, take in approximately 3 Billion dollars every single Monday! We don't open banks. We don't open hospitals. We don't open insurance companies. We open fashion lines. We put out liquor labels. That's fine, but with all these unbanked blacks, we could make a killing in this market. The closest I see to approaching that world is Russell Simmons with the Rush Card.
We don't have a massive shortage of people who could lead these companies. Lots of blacks earn MBAs, study economics, go into the business world, and lead U. S. Banks, and Chases, and Bank of Americas. So, why don't we put our support behind revolutionary ideas? Black people with big money need to be investing in a few industries, as far as I can see--banks, hospitals, and green technology.
Yeah, it is hard to run a bank, or a hospital, or a wind farm. It is hard to run a clothing line. Ask the folks at FUBU. Black people don't need more clothes. If the clothing industry stopped producing new clothes, tomorrow, there would be enough clothes in the resale markets to keep everyone clothed for decades. That market is totally flooded.
But, we know black people lack access to hospitals. We know that they can hardly find a place to bank. Negroes lined up at check cashing places; we don't even own them. If the church can't open a bank, why it can't open a check cashing? We open a ton of restaurants, but black people ought to go home and cook something they got in the refrigerator. Besides, I ain't never been in a restaurant that served food all that much better than I can cook myself. I'm a great fucking cook, and I'm not even the best cook I know. Black people pride themselves on cooking, so why do we need some more restaurants--particularly in this economy?!?! Hospitals and insurance companies making money hand over fucking fist!
Racism will keep us out of the banking industry? I don't get that. I see it like this. All you need to open a bank is some know-how and a lot of money. And, ultimately, to become FDIC insured. If you start small and limit the clientele, you can build a rep as a bank and force the banking world to contend with you.
Lately, I have come to see that I am in the wrong field. I went into teaching, Humanities, Literature, Arts. My father always told me to major in mathematics; that was my strongest subject. He told me I had a mind for money, and to go into math. I should have, and I, actually, believe I will. I'm going back to school, and I'm going to pursue a PhD in a completely different discipline--Chemistry or Math. Teaching serves an important role, and I'm a great teacher, but I want to put myself in a position to really seize power in the new economy. I can get a PhD in Chemistry, and become a scientist. I can get a degree in Math with a minor in Finance and open a bank.
I know those are big dreams. I'm hoping that someone will read this and start to dream big. I'm hoping that someone will think bigger than a restaurant and broader than a clothing line, and instead of buying out the projects or some sports team, buy a hospital, and invest time, energy, and resources into making it the best.
Black people, what we gon do? We gonna just keep chasing our tails, or are we going to stop the cycle of madness and start making decisions that maximize our resources and make us a force to be reckoned with in this world? We have a braintrust in our community, people with skills and resources who would love to invest them into improving their lives, and by extension our communities. What we don't have are the institutions in which we can invest ourselves. So, come on Black people. What we gonna do?
My mom and dad, even the times they make me want to scream
