What: Community Gathering to Encourage Divestment from Bank of America

 

When: Friday, December 20 at 2 p.m.

 

Where: Bank of America (8 Lester Street, Martinsville, VA 24112)

 

Martinsville, Va.—Virginia Organizing will hold a demonstration at the Martinsville Bank of America on December 20 at 2 p.m. to encourage community members to divest from larger banks like Bank of America and invest in local community banks. This action is a continuation of Virginia Organizing’s campaign to stop Bank of America from harming local communities.

 

“We in this community are uniquely suited to take care of each other,” said Virginia Organizing Martinsville Chapter leader Libby Dickerson. “The big banks and big corporations have proven that they won’t look out for our interests and don’t want to take care of our community. We need to keep our money local and look after each other!”

 

Community leaders are most concerned about Bank of America’s funding of predatory lending and taking advantage of tax loopholes to avoid paying federal income taxes. According to Think Progress, Bank of America paid $0 in federal income taxes and collected $1 billion in tax “benefits” from the American people in 2010.

 

“Bank of America keeps a lot of its money overseas so it doesn’t have to pay taxes and that’s not right,” said Dickerson.

 

Leaders will also visit local small businesses to thank them for their commitment to the local economy and contributing to Martinsville by paying taxes.

 

To interview a spokesperson for Virginia Organizing, please contact Amanda Pohl at 804-337-1912 or amanda@virginia-organizing.org.