What is Debanking?
It Can Happen to You
Have you heard of debanking? Do you know anyone who has been debanked?
Debanking is not new. In researching, I found debanking articles, like And Then There Were None. Banks Are De-Banking on a Grand Scale that reference 2010 and say it’s been happening for ‘decades’.
It has become a means of harming those whose political stance or religious beliefs do not align with Big Banks, a means of control or perhaps of instilling fear so that religious or conservative views will be suppressed.
Urban Dictionary defines debanking as: “When an individual or organisation is deprived the ability of using the services of banks, financial institutions and/or payment processors. The term is typically used when the motivations are political. Unable to receive or send money, the controversial extremist [John Doe] found himself debanked. Paypal, Mastercard and Chase Bank suspended his accounts, after being pressured by activists.”
Most occurences that become public are about organizations or well-known people, such as Sidney Powell, Nigel Farage, Dr. Mercola, and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (Online informational sources on Dr. Mercola and RFK, Jr. are many and varied. I don’t want to influence you on them.) They are able to exclaim the injustices far and wide. They have access to ways to fight the unfairness. The average citizen has no such recourse.
Imagine suddenly, with no advance warning, having only cash to use - no checks, no credit cards, no other means of payment. While I am a big proponent of Keep Cash Alive, living 100% on cash is simply not doable in this day and age. Perhaps your car payment must be sent through the mail. Is it feasible to mail hundreds of dollars? Certainly most mortgage companies are not local to their debtors.
(Then there are the businesses that no longer even accept cash. Yes, that’s becoming common too. Your favorite coffee shop or restaurant - surprise - tells you, after you’ve ordered or even after your meal, that your cash isn’t acceptable. I’m very curious what they’ll do when I ask if I’m supposed to wash dishes for payment. They certainly do not want me ‘singing for my supper’.)
A few examples:
In March of this year, Alliance Defending Freedom posted this on their website, Debanking: Cancel Culture’s Newest Threat. The post talks about how JPMorgan Chase has treated the National Committee for Religious Freedom (NCRF). NCRF exists to defend “religious freedom equally for all Americans and all their religious communities.” The article also mentions that in 2021, Chase initially denied payment processing services to the mainstream GOP-affiliated group Defense of Liberty (founded by former state Rep. Paul Curtman) before backing down and allowing payments to process. Chase has a track record of attempts at debanking.
Last year, JPMorgan Chase closed the bank account of the National Committee for Religious Freedom, a newly established nonprofit led by Sam Brownback, the former senator and U.S. ambassador.
Last fall, Chase debanked Senator, Ambassador and Governor (so, you know, pretty well respected) Brownback's religious liberty organization, after having debanked General Michael Flynn and a series of other conservatives.
In March, Newsweek published Stop the Troubling Trend of Politically Motivated Debanking by Mr. Brownback and Jeremy Tedesco.
Nigel Farage, former leader of Brexit, had his account closed by Coutts, a private bank affiliated with British banking group NatWest, in July.
In addition to Dr. Joseph Mercola, Chase debanked, without warning, Dr. Syed Haider. Not just them, but also Dr. Mercola's employees – and his and their families. All without explanation.
Other resources inlcude:
Indigenous Advanced Ministries debanked. Jeremy Tedesco, president of the nonprofit legal organization Alliance Defending Freedom representing Indigenous Advanced Ministries, told Fox News Digital that his client made repeated inquiries to Bank of America for an explanation of its impending closure.
Why are Australian fintechs being de-banked
If you want a deeper dive, this article from July 2021 is very detailed, Derisking and Debanking: Is a Solution Coming This Time Around?
If you subscribe to Bloomburg, you can access British Muslims Say Banks Ruin Lives With Debanking Policies.
Soving the mystery:
Ever wonder about the Federalist Papers? Here’s an overview.
If you really want to dig deep, click here for the full Federalist Papers text.
VoteTexas.gov, https://www.votetexas.gov/get-involved/index.html
Until next time…
Please share your thoughts in the comments. Or email me, and let’s have a problem-solving conversation. I welcome ‘letters to the editor’ type emails and may publish yours. I hope we can create a caucus with positive, back-to-the-founders’-dream-for-America results. Have a topic you want to know more about?
God bless you,
-Ellen
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Thanks again for reading! I’m glad you’re here!
This is truly scary thought! We all know who regulates the big banks!
This is undoubtly communist! No way around that!