Chicago protests against bankers association puts spotlight on housing

As anti-Wall Street occupations roiled the country, more than 5,000 demonstrators marched on the Mortgage Bankers Assocation (MBA) annual meeting in Chicago Monday.

Chicago has been ground zero for the national mortgage crisis in many ways, and critics say that a welcome like the one received by the bankers isn’t surprising in an area where 1/3rd of the homes have underwater mortgages. The problem isn’t confined to Chicago, Minnesota has seen more than 22,000 foreclosures filed in the last year, with 2,400 in August alone, according to RealtyTrac.

Take Back Chicago, organized by a coalition of labor unions and community groups and joined by Occupy Chicago, is just the latest show of public anger at the financial system in the Windy City — and in particular at its handling of the housing crisis.

“The government bailed the banks out on our backs, but they haven’t bailed us out,” said Thurlester Ibrahim, a member the Anti-Eviction Campaign. “We’re losing our homes.”

In a statement to The Wall Street Journal, the Mortgage Bankers Association acknowledged that they share responsibility for the financial crisis that has devastated communities around the country, and that it has cause their industry a “trust deficit.”

Groups on the state and federal level have tried to remedy this mistrust – most recently, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan opened an investigation into ‘mortgage rescue companies’ in Chicagoland alleged to have used attorneys to collect fees to help customers and then not delivering, cheating homeowners out of nearly $375,000.

Madigan also opened an investigation into allegations of mass robo-signing in Illinois – a practice in which companies signed thousands of foreclosure documents without verifying their accuracy. Yet some demonstrators say these moves are only a Band-Aid.

“We must target additional revenue for investment in public services and critical infrastructure that will create jobs and stimulate private investment in job creation,” said Curtis Smith, President of Lakeview Action Coalition, calling for a more long-term solution. “Serious living wage job creation is the fastest way to fix the economy – America is not broke, but our economy is broken.”