One in four Americans are unbanked or underbanked. This is in part because because banks across the country are closing branches, or penalizing those who don’t have large savings. This means that 64 million Americans — disproportionately Black and Brown people — can’t easily access basic financial services and are forced to pay thousands a year in fees for alternatives.
But one solution to this disparity is within our reach, it’s actually just down the street from you: the post office.
The U.S. Postal Service has the infrastructure to provide basic financial services at all of its branches. With an office in every ZIP code nationwide and trust within the community, banking at the most accessible institution in America could create a public option needed to put millions of families in greater control of their finances.
Joining us on At Liberty this week to talk about why postal banking is key to closing the racial wealth gap is Rakim Brooks, a senior campaign strategist at the ACLU who is managing our new Systemic Equality campaign.
https://soundcloud.com/aclu/your-friendly-neighborhood-bank-the-post-office
Published May 8, 2021 at 01:37AM
via ACLU https://ift.tt/3b8QPsk
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