From The Daily Beast, the best story I've seen on the remarkably successful Bank Transfer Day action, which went from an idea to billions of dollars in accounts transferred in a matter of weeks:
Kristen Christian was feeling more than a little fed up with the county’s big banks when a month ago today she logged on to Facebook to share an idea with friends: withdraw your money from the likes of Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase, and instead open an account with a credit union. She even chose a deadline for taking action: this Saturday, Nov. 5.
“Together we can ensure that these banking institutions will always remember the 5th of November,” Christian, then a 27-year-old art-gallery owner living in Los Angeles, wrote on Facebook. “If we shift our funds from the for-profit banking institutions in favor of not-for-profit credit unions before this date, we will send a clear message that conscious consumers won’t support companies with unethical business practices.”
[edit]
More than a few people seem to agree. The Credit Union National Association, a D.C.-based advocacy group, recently surveyed 5,000 credit unions across the country. The vast majority reported a surge in membership and a surge in deposits. The association estimated that credit unions across the country have picked up at least 650,000 new customers over the past month and collectively added $4.5 billion in savings accounts, whether from new members or from existing members shifting funds.
It's an amazing start for a protest action, fueled by pent-up resentment at ginormous banks who see fit to charge their customers pretty much whatever they wish.
Ted Rall finds the humor in that:
But it's so so true! Why do we tolerate the self-serving of huge financial institutions? When we would scoff at an ordinary citizen who took the same stand? What are we — masochists?
Kit Stolz 