CLEVELAND, Ohio-Grassroots groups including Black on Black Crime Inc., the Imperial Women, Cleveland Jobs With Justice, the Northeast Ohio's Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign, Stop Targeting Ohio's Poor, Occupy Cleveland and a host of others will rally over corporate greed and malfeasance with the sponsoring group Empowering And Strengthening Ohio's People (ESOP) on Tue., Dec 6, at 11:00 am at Chase Bank in Cleveland Hts., Oh at 12388 Cedar Rd. (Editor's Note: Cleveland Hts. is a suburb of Cleveland that is 43 percent Black. In addition to Cleveland, it borders Shaker Hts., E. Cleveland, University Hts. and other cities of Cuyahoga County. Like Cleveland, it too has been hit hard with illegal foreclosures furthered through corporate fraud that is tearing at the fabric of the middle class community that also enjoys prominent physicians and other medical associates from places like the renowned Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Case Western Reserve University Medical School and University Hospitals).
Contacts for the rally are ESTOP organizers Geoff Englebret and James Rudyk at 216-361-0718 and ESOP and Imperial Women Member Marvetta Rutherford at 216-938-6627.
Several community activists will meet at the ESOP Bld at 3631 Perkins Ave . in Cleveland, Suit 4C, at 10:00 am on on Dec. 6 for a free lunch and then leave on ESOP buses to head to Chase Bank on Cedar Hill at 12388 Cedar Rd in Cleveland Hts. (Take downtown Chester Ave and turn left onto E. 36th St., and take the first right on to Perkins for the ESOP Building. Follow Cedar Rd in Cleveland all the way to Cedar Hill in Cleveland Hts for Chase Bank).
Tuesday's protest, which seeks to draw people tired of greed and malfeasance by mortgage companies and banks like Chase that charge exorbitant fees, comes at a time when the Occupy Wall Street Movement is gaining momentum as are its affiliate movements in respective cities throughout the country like the major metropolitan predominantly Black city of Cleveland, and in international venues such as Toronto Canada's Occupy Toronto.
Chase Bank and its finance companies are also under fire for allegedly stealing the homes of Cuyahoga County residents via mortgage and foreclosure fraud including paying less than a fourth of what a foreclosure home is worth to illegally buy it back at a foreclosure sheriff's sale, charging the former home owner with the difference, and then reselling the home to make an additional profit. And data also show that the reduced foreclosed homes of Cuyahoga County are also going to friends of mortgage company executives, politicians, and affiliates of big wigs from the Cuyahoga County Republican and Democratic Parties.
"Wall street and the banks like Chase and Wells Fargo got bailed out and homeowners, renters and the little people got sold out," said Community Activist Marvetta Rutherford. "I am willing to fight for the community partly because they cannot take anything else from me."
Activists will also demand that Chase Bank pay what is in excess of $2 million in back taxes, that its officials pledge to no longer steal foreclosed homes at a fraction of the price in violation of state law, and for it to agree to push federal authorities to reduce the principal on mortgages during the nation's economic decline and because they say the interest rates on homes are illegal under the Fair Lending Act and derived in bad faith. Even low interest loans, say activists, are bogus because the monies a homeowner has paid in interest at the end of a 30 year home mortgage loan is preposterous.
Art McKoy, the founder of Black on Black Crime, said that he will attend Tuesday's rally at Chase Bank and that it is time for community activists of the Black community especially to now turn their focus more toward corporate impropriety and any elected officials that are perpetuating it to the detriment of the community.
"I will be at the rally," said McKoy."And I look forward to picketing Chase Bank and in the future other banks and mortgage companies that have done harm to our communities."
