Thread: NC: BofA facing boycott over credit card

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/ ... 719954.htm

BofA facing boycott over credit card
Coalition says bank should be charged with `aiding and abetting' illegal immigrants
RICK ROTHACKER
rrothacker@charlotteobserver.com

A coalition of groups that advocate for tighter U.S. borders has launched a boycott against Bank of America Corp. because of a new credit card that could be used by illegal immigrants.

The National Illegal Immigration Boycott Coalition is asking people to close their accounts and sign a petition at www.bankofamericaboycott.com. Organizer William Gheen, president of Raleigh-based Americans for Legal Immigration PAC, also argues bank officials should face federal charges for "aiding and abetting" illegal immigrants.

"Nobody is above the law, including Bank of America," he said.

The boycott is the latest backlash against a credit card the Charlotte bank is testing in Los Angeles that requires little or no credit history. Customers must have a checking account in good standing with the bank, but they don't necessarily need a Social Security number to sign up.

Two Republican members of the House Financial Services Committee also told Fox News on Friday they would ask for hearings on the program, citing concerns about promoting illegal immigration and identity theft.

Bank of America spokeswoman Betsy Weinberger said the card was not "specifically developed or marketed for illegal immigrants," adding the initiative allows customers to build a credit history with a "leading bank."

Eager to find new customers among the nation's burgeoning ranks of Hispanic immigrants, U.S. banks are increasingly offering checking accounts, money transfer services and mortgages that don't require a Social Security number. Bank of America is the first major credit card company to step into the arena.

Under the U.S. Patriot Act, designed to stop money laundering and terrorist financing after Sept. 11, banks are required to check the identity of their customers, but they don't have to determine immigration status. "Non-U.S. persons" who don't have a Social Security number can open accounts with other documents, including tax ID numbers and so-called matricula consular IDs issued by Mexico and other governments.

Banks including Bank of America, Wachovia Corp., Wells Fargo & Co. and BB&T Corp. accept matricula consular IDs.

Bank of America's new card requires an upfront security deposit of $99 and has an interest rate that can exceed 21 percent. When reviewing applicants, Bank of America uses employees to evaluate credit worthiness, instead of analyzing credit scores with computers.

Weinberger, the bank spokeswoman, said Bank of America follows Patriot Act rules with all customers. She said it is too early to tell whether the card will be expanded outside Los Angeles.

The Hispanic market is critical for Bank of America's future growth in a nation where the non-Latino population is barely increasing. Latino advocates have welcomed the company's new card, saying it helps Hispanics create a credit record necessary to build wealth and assimilate into the economy. Critics say profit-seeking U.S. businesses are encouraging immigrants to enter the country illegally, sapping the social infrastructure.

The National Illegal Immigration Boycott Coalition has previously boycotted Miller Brewing Co. over immigration issues. And a Web site called www.embargowellsfargo.com urges a boycott of San Francisco-based Wells Fargo for issuing mortgages to customers without Social Security numbers.

Gheen of ALIPAC promoted the boycott Friday on the Fox News program "Your World with Neil Cavuto" and plans to hit the talk radio show circuit. In an appearance on the Cavuto show, Reps. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Tom Price, R-Ga., said they want hearings on the program and the rules that allow it. "One of our largest corporate citizens is turning its back on the wishes of the American people," Price said in a statement.

During the Miller boycott, about 15,000 people signed the a petition, Gheen said. He expects more to rally against Bank of America. As of Friday afternoon, more than 400 people had signed ALIPAC's petition, according to the group's Web site. Bank of America says it has more than 55 million consumer and small business customers

Correct me if I’m wrong but aren’t these folks required to have some sort of “work IDâ€

Originally Posted by WMCMinor

It’s the only group of lawbreakers, the illegal aliens and the people that knowingly hire them, I can think of that we reward for breaking our laws.

That about sums it up Minor.

Originally Posted by WMCMinor

From what I’ve seen the counterfeit doc’s are legitimate SS#’s just not belonging to the people using them in order to work and get a paycheck.

They're using dead peoples' numbers, living peoples' numbers that are working, numbers that haven't been issued yet and madeup numbers.

Go to http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=F ... ht=raeford to see some of the fakes found in NC. They look just like the real thing.

Originally Posted by WMCMinor

From what I’ve seen the counterfeit doc’s are legitimate SS#’s just not belonging to the people using them in order to work and get a paycheck. So, yes, taxes and SS are withheld but under someone else’s SS#. So the employer that knowingly hires someone using another’s SS is part of that identity theft.

Welcome WM
There's an article saved in here that showed over a million persons working with 000 00 0000. The employers that hire people with this number were not charged as they didn't "know" it was an invalid number. 123 45 6789 is popular too. Nearly everyone but employers knows that number belongs to John Doe.

Thanks for the welcome.
Isn't there something about ignorance of the law... I have never heard of the 0x9 SS#'s. I would think that if someone had the wherewithal to hire and pay an individual, they would have common sense enough to know better.

I think they know better but just don't care.

I believe greed and power are the answers for the employers. Cheaper labor and in what I witnessed, an almost master-slave relationship. I mean these people held assembly jobs but washed the boss mans truck and tore down fences on company time. Which in the end does not compute as far as saving the company money by hiring illegal aliens but it does give little people a sense of big power.

BTTT

added to the homepage

http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=N ... e&sid=1952

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