Central Florida JwJ joined the Central Florida AFL-CIO as part of a nationwide effort to demand good jobs and a stop to bank bailouts. On Friday March 26th, a group of 30 people started leafletting in front of a Wachovia Bank located on Wall Street in Downtown Orlando. As people leaflettted, a representative was there on behalf of big bankers to thank customers for their hard earned tax dollars in bankers’ pockets. At the end, a delegation walked into the local branch to deliver the Crook of the Month Award.
Under pressure from the community, Jobs with Justice, and other groups, Wells Fargo has agreed to terms that will allow Belva Davis to stay in her home.
Homeowner Belva Davis of Detroit’s East English Village fell behind on her mortgage while unemployed. Last December, Wells Fargo started to foreclose on Belva’s home.
Belva got a new job, and wanted to renegotiate terms and pay the mortgage. For months Wells Fargo refused to modify Belva’s loan, but they weren’t counting on the outpouring of support Belva got from her neighbors and allies throughout Detroit and across the country.
Belva’s struggle to stay in her home turned a corner after SE Michigan Jobs with Justice brought labor into the fight. On September 29, more than 50 people picketed the Wachovia/Wells Fargo branch office in Grosse Point Woods, MI to demand that Wells Fargo not evict Belva Davis and the thousands of homeowners like her who have fallen behind on their mortgages.
Immediately following the rally, the bank called Belva’s attorney, Jerry Goldberg, to begin negotiations to modify her loan, and Belva finally got a payment plan she can
On September 29, more than 50 people picketed the Wachovia/Wells Fargo branch office in Grosse Point Woods, MI. They rallied to demand that Wells Fargo not evict Belva Davis and the thousands of homeowners like her who have fallen behind on their mortgages.
Homeowner Belva Davis of Detroit’s East English Village fell behind on her mortgage while unemployed. She has a new job and wants to pay the mortgage, but Wells Fargo refuses to modify the loan.
Last year, bailout bandit Wells Fargo pocketed $25 billion in taxpayer money. Even after the government gave it another $2.8 billion to modify mortgages, Wells Fargo has restructured only 6% of its eligible loans, well below most banks (see http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/).
Wells Fargo spends millions lobbying against pro-citizen bills like the Employee Free Choice Act, the Foreclosure Prevention Act (S 2636), and House Bill 3609, which would allow judges to modify mortgages. Where is the bailout for Wells Fargo customers & their neighborhoods?
More than 200 people gathered in front of Wells Fargo in downtown Chicago yesterday to hold them accountable for their corporate crimes. Protestors demanded justice for the workers at Quad City Die Casting and an end to evictions and foreclosures.
Quad City Die Casting was forced to close after Wells Fargo cut off operating credit to the company. Since the plant closure, UE Local 1174 has filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board because Wells Fargo has denied payment of $200,000 in back-pay and benefits owed to workers. Deb Johann of UE Local 1174 said:
“Wells Fargo first ends financing, forcing our company to close, and now they won’t pay us what we are owed by law. To us, our vacation, insurance and wages mean everything to our families. But to Wells Fargo it’s pennies, not even a blip in their billions. Yet they choose to cheat us out of what we have earned. And to think we helped them out when they needed it!”
Protestors also demanded that Wells Fargo stop home foreclosures and tenant evictions from foreclosed rental properties. Wells
Members of Massachusetts JwJ JwJ got ready to protest Whole Foods over CEO John Mackey’s op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, The Whole Foods Alternative to Obamacare, in which he argues against any government involvement in health care and advocates for health care reforms that emphasize “personal choices.” Stay tuned for more coverage as JwJ & others continue to put the pressure on this week.
Alternet reported on the campaign being forged by the UE and supported by Jobs with Justice targeting 