Bitcoin Is an Awesome Opportunity for Black America to Opt Out of the Racist Banking System
Bitcoin’s neutrality can help millions of black Americans in the United States.
The death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020 in Minneapolis has highlighted the deep malaise that persists in the United States. George Floyd was simply killed by white police officer Derek Chauvin during a seemingly routine arrest.
The problem is that this type of police violence involving African Americans is commonplace in the United States.
They reflect a problem of racism against blacks that is deeply rooted in American society. This problem is never really dealt with, so it makes sense that it resurfaces again and again. You can’t hope to solve a social problem as serious as racism against blacks by keeping quiet about it.
Unfortunately, a president like Donald Trump will not be able to solve it. Trump takes a malicious pleasure in stirring up tensions between communities in the United States. Donald Trump’s goal is simple: divide and conquer.
Donald Trump’s innumerable provocations encouraged the riots that developed in most major American cities following the death of George Floyd.
At a time when the American people needed appeasement, Donald Trump never stopped blowing on the embers. The result is disastrous. It is to be hoped that Donald Trump will not be re-elected so that African Americans can hope for a better consideration of a problem that is plaguing American society.
#BlackLivesMatter movement must be our common fight
The #BlackLivesMatter movement that has come back to the forefront is the struggle of all of us. Whether we are black or white, we must all realize the importance of this struggle.
Unfortunately, I have the impression that many politicians in the Trump administration still don’t realize what is at stake for the future of the United States.
The best example of this comes from U.S. Vice President Mike Pence.
During an interview in Pennsylvania on June 19, 2020, Mike Pence refused to say the words “Black lives matter”. While Mike Pence agreed that the death of George Floyd was a tragedy, he preferred to say the following:
“And so all lives matter in a very real sense.”
Mike Pence
While it is obvious that all lives count, the heart of the debate is not here now.
The heart of the debate is to admit that there is a problem of racism against African Americans in the United States.
In order to deal with this problem in the best possible way, we must first become truly aware of it.
To say that “Black lives matter” is already the beginning of consideration of this problem. As long as we have politicians like Mike Pence who refuse to understand this, the problem can never really be addressed.
Behind this problem of police violence that kills so many African Americans every year, black Americans face a whole host of other problems in their daily lives.
There are many examples of the banking system’s racism against African Americans
A few days ago, I read an excellent article in The New York Times with a title that speaks to the problem I’m going to talk about:
‘Banking While Black’: How Cashing a Check Can Be a Minefield
This article highlights several testimonials from black customers who have experienced discrimination as bank customers.
The example that caught my attention is that of Jabari Bennett. In March 2019, Jabari Bennett went to his local bank branch to withdraw $6,400 in cash to buy a used Toyota Camry at a dealership in Wilmington.
Jabari Bennett had plenty of cash to make the withdrawal since he had sold his house in Atlanta shortly before to come live with his mother in Wilmington.
A client of Wells Fargo Bank for the past four years, Jabari Bennett had $70,000 in his bank account from the sale of his home.
By going to Wells Fargo’s local branch, Bennett thought getting his money would be a formality. He then thought that it would only take a few minutes to go and get his Toyota Camry.
Just the opposite happened to Jabari Bennett.
He walked out of his local branch of his bank empty-handed, and worse still, totally morally devastated.
First of all, a teller refused to accept him as the bank account holder. He questioned his out-of-state driver’s license. Yet Jabari Bennett had previously informed the bank of his new address two weeks earlier.
A branch manager then came to see Jabari Bennett and told him to leave. Jabari Bennett was incredulous about this incredibly unfair situation and complied.
Nevertheless, he tried to come back to justify himself again in an attempt to close the deal.
Following this third attempt, the branch manager bluntly threatened to call the police if Jabari Bennett did not leave.
Preferring to avoid a tragedy if the police got involved in the case, Jabari Bennett left totally devastated as he explains:
“The experience made me feel like I was nothing.”
Jabari Bennett
Forced to abandon his plan to buy a car, Jabari Bennett then decided to change banks by transferring all his money to a new bank.
He also hired Mr. Rodal, who gained a reputation for representing black clients against banks after one of his client’s 2018 stories went viral.
So Mr. Rodal sent a letter to Wells Fargo, but negotiations stalled. Jabari Bennett then decided to go public in order to move things forward, but also to prevent this kind of humiliation from happening again in the future:
“I don’t want anybody else to go through what I went through.”
Jabari Bennett
The current banking system is racist toward Black America
Signaling an extremely deep-rooted problem, Ms. Eshet, a Wells Fargo spokeswoman, defended the attitude of the employees at the Wells Fargo branch. The latter would be specially trained to spot fraud attempts.
In addition, Wells Fargo strengthened security protocols to thwart Internet scams involving large money transfers.
Ms. Eshet’s statement is ultimately symptomatic of the denial in which many people find themselves:
“In this instance, there were enough markers for our team to conduct extra diligence in order to protect the customer and the bank.”
Ms. Eshet, Wells Fargo spokeswoman
Rather than admit the obvious, namely the discrimination suffered by Jabari Bennett, Wells Fargo officials are looking for excuses.
Doing so does nothing to improve the grossly unfair problems that thousands of African Americans face with the banking system that is racist.
I have only given you the example of Jabari Bennett here, but I can list dozens of other examples.
The problem has been around for many years, and it’s no coincidence that the #BankingWhileBlack hashtag was created, and then became so popular on social networks.
What are the solutions for Black America?
The big question to ask from this constant problem is this:
How can we ensure that African Americans are no longer discriminated against by a racist banking system?
A first solution could come from the banking system itself. The banks could change to put an end to this discrimination. Unfortunately, in order to find solutions to a problem, they must first admit it.
The example of Wells Fargo shows the denial in which a majority of players in the banking system find themselves.
As long as they do not admit the existence of the problem, they will not try to solve it.
Black America must therefore look for other solutions.
The ideal being a solution that is politically neutral, and really belongs to the people. Indeed, it is the best way to abstract oneself from the arbitrary decisions taken by a minority of powerful men at the head of the current monetary and financial system.
You know this solution, or at least you have heard about it before: it is Bitcoin.
Bitcoin has no leader, and therefore belongs to all its users.
Bitcoin is an incredible opportunity for Black America
Whether you are black or white, Bitcoin will make no distinction for the simple reason that Bitcoin runs automatically following what is written in its source code.
I often talk about Bitcoin as a great financial inclusion tool for Africa. If you think about it, Bitcoin can play an equally important role for Black America.
It can empower African Americans who are unfairly discriminated against by a banking system that is moving far too slowly. With Bitcoin, you can free yourself from a banking world that is totally anachronistic.
This is something that can benefit all African Americans, but far beyond that, all those who are not fortunate enough to be included in the current system.
Isaiah Jackson is the author of the excellent book “Bitcoin & Black America” which I urge you to read urgently to fully understand the potential of Bitcoin for Black America.
In his book, Isaiah Jackson explains how Black America can benefit from the rise of Bitcoin in the coming years.
The revolution in the global financial system will not be televised, it will be a digital revolution.
By adopting Bitcoin as soon as possible, African Americans will be able to play a central role in it. This role must be at multiple levels: business, job, and educational.
Bitcoin gives you access to the best bank in the world: yourself. By opting for Bitcoin instead of a banking system that unfortunately remains racist, African Americans will be able to move things faster in their favor.
Conclusion
I’m writing this story as a white man, and I’m well aware of the privilege it gives me. It is precisely because I am aware of this white privilege that I want to say what Mike Pence and a majority of powerful people at the head of the current system refuse to say:
Black lives matter.
The place of blacks in U.S. society matters too, and as privileged whites, we must work as hard as we can to make a difference.
Supporting Bitcoin by explaining that it can be an incredible opportunity for millions of African Americans who want to opt out of a racist banking system that doesn’t respect them is therefore essential.
It is up to all of us to seize the Bitcoin opportunity to build a fairer world that will be beneficial for all in the future.
(Disclaimer: This story contains an affiliate link for the book “Bitcoin & Black America”. If you choose to make a purchase after clicking this link I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!)
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