Wells Fargo Divestment Campaign Talk and Public Banking Institute Discussion in Helena, Mont. - March 25, 2012

Yesterday, I was invited to give a talk about Occupy Bozeman's divestment campaign against Wells Fargo.

I used the talk to discuss the disempowerment of our voices that results from a system dominated by big national banks, much akin to an essay I wrote recently called: Wells Fargo and the Loss of Our Voices: One Anarchist's View. In that spirit, I invited Josh Davis, also of Occupy Bozeman, to talk about his efforts as the Montana coordinator for the Public Banking Institute, an effort to de-centralize the entire banking system - a means he claims would result in a huge divestment from big banks, serving as a transitional structure to something better. For instance, large local institutions like universities are not likely to divest from big banks if the local credit unions cannot handle the accounts. Josh argues that this structure - while certainly not revolutionary - would provide the potential for universities - like Montana State University (who has an account at US Bank) - to divest and perhaps prepare a climate for more effective actions against the overall system.

A discussion ensues with the group hearing the talk, composed mostly of activists from Helena and Bozeman.

The total event is 1 hour, 40 minutes.