SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA – From throughout the Bay region and beyond they came, one thousand strong – union users proudly showing their ads, community companies from communities wracked by foreclosures and jobless, faith leaders, housing and justice that is racial.

They bore a coffin topped with flowers and emblazoned with the legends, “8 million jobs,” “5 million homes,” symbolizing the financial crisis’ devastating impact on working people as they marched through the financial district to Wells Fargo headquarters where shareholders were meeting April 27. “Shine a light on corporate greed – working families have actually mouths to feed!” they chanted, and families that are“Working a directly to know – hey big banking institutions, where’s our dough?”

“I’m standing with my next-door next-door neighbors, my friends and family, who’re jobless and also have lost their houses,” retired Pacific Gas and Electrical Co. worker Maria Elena Buitron stated as she accompanied the coffin. “Every time, individuals are driven down until they usually have absolutely absolutely nothing!”

Her outrage was provided by Brenda Blannon, marching with Contra Costa County’s Interfaith Supporting Community Organization. “The banking institutions are cheating us left and right,” she stated. “They overcharge us for the checking reports after which they mess them up and also make us belated with payments. Someone has to bring them up short!”

A marcher suddenly climbed onto a cement planter that held a tree, hoisting his young daughter up to join him during a brief halt in front of a Chase branch. Recounting “six months of discomfort and suffering” as a result of Chase, Jose Vega asked, “Is anyone familiar using them losing papers, and asking for similar things again and again?” “Yes!” roared the group.

After Sen. Dianne Feinstein filed an issue on their behalf, Vega thought he had been on the path to resolving their issue. But simply due to the fact bank had been once again asking for more papers, it suddenly foreclosed in their house. “Chase can be responsible as all of the big banking institutions !” Vega declared, as their audience applauded and cheered. “This is criminal plus it has to stop!”

When at Wells Fargo, marchers settled in behind barricades down the street through the bank’s head office, warding from the spring rainfall and wind with bright plastic that is red furnished by the Ca Nurses Association.

Speakers regaled the audience with facts: Wells Fargo had been one of the nation’s subprime lenders that are biggest, so that as California’s 3rd biggest mortgage company in 2008, it absolutely was 3 x more prone to reject loans to areas of color rather than mostly white areas in Oakland and north park. Wells Fargo can also be among the big players into the cash advance industry, not just supplying credit into the payday lenders that are biggest but making such loans through unique ATMs, at 240 % yearly interest.

Meanwhile a delegation brought the demonstrators’ needs into the shareholders’ meeting: stop predatory and discriminatory lending, keep families within their domiciles, help reconstruct neighborhoods, invest in communities – including helping to come up with jobs – and prevent fighting federal economic reform. They gone back to report the investors mostly seemed indifferent, going about their company regardless of individuals losing houses and jobs.

One delegation user electrified the audience with phone phone calls to “move our cash, as a bunch, produce a zone that is no-banking focus on Wells Fargo!”

The Big Banking institutions and Wall Street! as rainfall and wind acquired, demonstrators left utilizing the terms of Ca work Federation mind Art Pulaski ringing inside their ears: “This is only the start of battle to prevent the excesses of Wells Fargo”

The April 27 march ended up being among an amount of actions this week at big banking institutions across the nation, prior to an April 29 march on Wall St. by the anticipated 10,000 union and community activists.