The worst thing a big bank can do is shame people who are struggling financially, but that is what Chase Bank did on Monday in a supposed effort to “motivate” people to save more, resulting in a backlash that has swept social media.
Chase Bank tried to blame poor people’s struggles on drinking coffee and going out to eat from time to time and taking a cab instead of walking to their destination in a tweet they soon deleted.
That didn’t go over very well with anyone, especially Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who has spent her career fighting for consumers and is running for president in 2020 on an economic justice platform:
.@Chase: why aren’t customers saving money?
Taxpayers: we lost our jobs/homes/savings but gave you a $25b bailout
Workers: employers don’t pay living wages
Economists: rising costs + stagnant wages = 0 savings
Chase: guess we’ll never know
Everyone: seriously?
#MoneyMotivation pic.twitter.com/WcboMr5MCE— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) April 29, 2019
Others joined her criticism of Chase by pointing out that the bank makes billions stealing people’s money via overdraft fees and charging people money just for not having a certain amount in their accounts.
Hey @Chase why’d you delete this tweet shaming people for drinking coffee?
Is it b/c it’s shameless enough you steal $2B a year in ATM & overdraft fees from lower income earners?
Or is it b/c you don’t pay a living wage to your tellers while your CEO makes $31M/year?
Do tell? pic.twitter.com/D7NOYY0SAc
— Qasim Rashid, Esq. (@QasimRashid) April 29, 2019
.@Chase charged me $12 for not having $1,500 in my checking account. Why isn’t that in here? pic.twitter.com/9Ik1ttLCZf
— Dan Wilbur (@DanWilbur) April 30, 2019
Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) demanded an apology, which has not happened:
.@Chase, this isn’t #MondayMotivation. Unless this condescension reflects Mr. Dimon’s view of his customers, I’d suggest an apology. We can call it #ToneDeafTuesday.
— Rep. Katie Porter (@RepKatiePorter) April 29, 2019
Many other Americans piled on from there:
ME: I got robbed
CHASE BANK: you deserved it bitch you should die— Jake Flores (@feraljokes) April 30, 2019
2007 Chase: why are our cash reserve so low
Fed:you are making subprime loans and destroying the economy
Fed:
Fed:
2007 Chase: I guess we’ll never know. Also, and completely unrelated, can we borrow $12 billion?
— Erik D. Schiller (@erikdschiller) April 30, 2019
Thanks to @Chase Bank’s suggestion to make my own tampons I was able to buy a birthday card for my Dad.
— Sarah Tollemache (@stollemache) April 30, 2019
My mom grew up during the depression. Her dad split, her mom raised 3 kids as a part time seamstress. They lost their house. BUT – when the kids couldn’t afford gum, they’d chew hot tar from the road paving trucks. Thanks for the tip, @Chase bank.
— Ben Mankiewicz (@BenMank77) April 30, 2019
What happened to this? Rethink your condescending idiocy? pic.twitter.com/37REnsJSI0
— PoorlybehavedWoman (@poorlybehaved) April 30, 2019
Bank that pays its CEO $31 million and received a $12 billion bailout after crashing our economy tells poor people to stop being so irresponsible with their money. pic.twitter.com/e8jNrU4hux
— Public Citizen (@Public_Citizen) April 29, 2019
Oh my God fuck you @Chase bank. https://t.co/em2QfmR2QW
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) April 30, 2019
If there’s a bank that should be broken up immediately, it’s Chase. And at the very least, its customers should close their accounts and take their money elsewhere.
Featured Image: Wikimedia