Columnist Jamala Rogers
Congresswoman Michele Bachman suggested that it was poor, black folks who brought Wall Street down. The Minnesota Republican blamed African Americans for the housing crises caused by subprime loans. That is the first lie.
In the last presidential debate, John McClain pronounced that the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) was “on the verge of maybe perpetrating one of the greatest frauds in voter history in this country, maybe destroying the fabric of democracy.” This is the second lie.
These two lies come together at the brink of a historical presidential election. To find out why and how, allow me to be your guide to Lie-Lie Land.
Most economic analysts will agree that subprime loans were not the cause of Wall Street’s collapse. A big part of the collapse occurred when these loans were bundled and resold again and again to investment companies throughout the world. A study by First American Loan Performance, a San Francisco research firm, reported that by the end of 2006, 61 percent of the borrowers offered subprime loans had credit good enough for market rate loans. And since black folks were a big percentage of these loans, I think it’s clear who the victims are.
You are a black, prospective homeowner sitting across the desk of a loan officer at a reputable institution. Why would you automatically think you’re about to be catapulted into bankruptcy or homelessness? Ted Janusz, a former senior loan officer and author of Kickback: Confessions of a Mortgage Salesman, confessed that it was pressure “to get a signature on the bottom line, at any cost.”
Last September, ACORN release a report confirming that minorities were steered to risky loans and were therefore disproportionately affected by the unscrupulous lending practice. ACORN reported that upper-income blacks were 3.3 times, and Latinos 3 times, more likely than upper-income whites to have a high-cost loan when purchasing a home in 2006.
ACORN has fought against redlining by financial institutions and has exposed predatory lending practices in poor communities. The group put a lot of energy and resources in the passage of the 1977 Community Reinvestment Act which encourages loans to neighborhoods historically redlined and suffering deterioration as a way to increase home ownership and stabilize communities. Bachman and others erroneously point to this 30 year old Act as the single factor behind the current meltdown.
The group has fought for affordable housing, livable wages and conducted voter registration drives. They have been hauled into court over the years to defend themselves against a number of charges. ACORN has been in Republican crosshairs for awhile.
It is ACORN’s voter registration campaign that is under fire. In Nevada, scores of suspicious registrations have been uncovered, prompting Republicans to demand an investigation by the Justice Department. The real reason may have more to do with the fact that over one million voters have been signed up. Although ACORN is a non partisan group, it is doubtful that these new voters will be future GOP supporters.
Let’s use some common sense here. When Mickey Mouse shows up as a new voter on an ACORN voter registration list, it is actually defrauding that group since ACORN pays workers to do registration. Plus, even if Mickey gets past the approval of the election registrar, would a pollworker really allow Mickey to cast a ballot? And if Mickey does cast a ballot, can you legitimately accuse ACORN of voter fraud?
This is an attempt to bring ACORN down and at the same time project a reason on November 5 as to why the McCain-Palin ticket went down in defeat. A sinking campaign is trying to take a community-based organization with them. Critically thinking citizens must demand that Republicans and Wall Street take responsibility for their own downfalls and let ACORN handle its business.