Posted by By Shametra L. Thomas – Dallas South News Contributor
Rev. Jesse Jackson addressed a crowd of elected officials, supporters, clergy and media this past Monday at the Hilton Anatole to discuss necessary action to be taken in response to the ongoing financial crisis. Home and church foreclosures, the weight of a distressed economy and the load of student loans that some college graduates are facing were all on his agenda.
“You may not be going into foreclosure, but if your neighbors’ home is foreclosed then it affects your property values.” explained Rev. Jackson. The implications of economic distress are not just felt from foreclosures, but there are a number of church’s that are finding themselves in financial hardship.
Churches more often than not depend on the financial goodwill of parishioners. “If a person loses their job they are not able to tithe. If they are not able to give and tithe then the church suffers too,” Rev. Jackson explained. Some churches have been unable find a viable solution to reverse the damage and eventually go into foreclosure. That loss is devastating to the communities they serve. For many the church is not just a place of worship it is a place of hope.
Rev. Jackson is calling for the support of the clergy and citizens within communities nationwide from small towns to big cities. “You target medicine wherever the pain is” says Rev. Jackson “and right now that pain is being felt in the hemorrhage of mortgage loans.” While big banks such as Chase, Wells Fargo and Bank of America have received a bail out from the federal government many people are wondering where the rescuing hand is for them. You see an almost hopelessness on the growing number of faces of people in the food lines, in bankruptcy courts or the ones in foreclosure.
For many families the process has been a nightmare. “We worked with our bank for 6 months paying a temporarily reduced rate and in the end the modification meant we actually paid almost $100.00 more,” says homeowner Kamaria James who was at the meeting. That story resembles those of other homeowners and pastors finding themselves going through foreclosure “There are some pastors that because of pride or shame will not say that they are on the brink of foreclosure.” stated Rev. Jackson. This is why there has been an urgent call for action. That action includes 1000 Churches Connected.
1000 Churches Connected is an initiative of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition in partnership with the Citizenship Fund implemented to assist churches in becoming a redeeming force for progressive change.
The organization will focus on citizenship education, consumer and shareholder activism and financial stewardship. One of the first orders of business is to organize one thousand churches and supporters in a mass negotiation targeting top banks, the same banks that received governmental assistance, but fail to provide assistance to the homeowners whose loans they hold: mass action for mass results.
According to a press release, Rev. Jackson will hold a national rally on Bank of America in Greensboro, North Carolina on February 23, 2010. He is challenging community leaders throughout the country to hold local rallies in their cities at Bank of America locations on that day.
Shametra L. Thomas is a Dallas area business owner and advocate. You may contact Shametra by logging on to www.shametrathomas.com or by email at streinventing@aol.com.
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