Action Now leader Donna Roberts being arrested at Bank of America (photo: David J. Unger, Medill News Service)
Tuesday, October 11th, Action Now held a rally at the Bank of America at Adams and Lasalle to drop off trash from one of their vacant buildings at 3328 W. Monroe. During the rally, Bank of America had five Action Now community leaders and mothers arrested. The women that were arrested were between the ages of 55 and 80 years old. They are pillars of the community and were willing to be arrested in order to save the children in their neighborhoods from the dangerous vacant buildings that lenders like Bank of America refuse to secure and maintain.
Outside of the Bank of America at Adams and Lasalle: Some of the trash and a couch from B of A's vacant building at 3328 W. Monroe
Under the Vacant Property Ordinance, lenders and servicers are responsible for the upkeep and safety of the abandoned properties that they have a legal interest in (i.e. homes left vacant after foreclosure). Bank of America continues to break the law by refusing to properly secure and maintain their vacant buildings. Since Bank of America will not go to our neighborhoods and clean-up their vacant properties, Action Now members brought the neighborhood to them. Members collected trash from a vacant building and brought it to Bank of
America to confront the bank with the effects the foreclosure crisis they caused and the dangerous vacant buildings they leave unsecured and in disrepair.
Ralliers crowded the windows and chanted words of support as Action Now members were arrested inside Bank of America
Press coverage of Bank of America rally and arrests:
- WGN News story and video
- CBS News
- Chicago Sun-Times
- Reuters
- Univision
- New York Times photo
- Chicago News Cooperative
- Progress Illinois
- Chicagoist
- Medill News
- Chicago Tribune
- ABC News
- WTSP News (Tampa Bay, FL)
- El Economista (Mexico)
- Zocalo (Mexico)
- Lavoz Libre (Madrid, Spain)
Here is what Bank of America’s vacant property at 3328 W. Monroe looked like:
