When consumers think of companies that aren’t friendly to the environment, typically they think of large industrial manufacturing concerns that are rampant with pollution, but now protesters are turning their eyes to the banking industry, especially Bank of America (NYSE: BAC).
Several sources, including the San Francisco Chronicle, recently reported a protest at a Bank of America location on California Street in San Francisco this week, where a group of activists were protesting the bank’s involvement in the corporation’s contribution to the issues of climate changes and its alleged obstruction to bringing forth a climate solution. More than 100 people participated in the protest and over 20 were arrested!
Bank of America seems to be a bit of an usual target for an environmental protest, but when considering some of the projects that banks fund, such as resource extraction, deforestation, and major exploration projects, it’s understandable that environmentalist looking for a corporation to target will go after the firms that provide financing for business practices that they do not like.
The protest was organized by a group called Mobilization for Climate Justice. David Solnit, one of the organizers for the event, said that “The world’s largest corporations are blocking an agreement to address the climate crisis that is endangering our common future. Meanwhile, Bank of America profits from financing dirty energy and carbon trading schemes that subsidize pollution and poverty.”
The event that Solnit and others organized was part of a global day of action to push people toward environmentally friendly solutions during next week’s talks in Copenhagen.
