#Sludge Report: Wells Fargo & Other Climate Destroying Banks
Credit to Author: Steve Hanley| Date: Sat, 12 Oct 2019 00:00:04 +0000
Published on October 11th, 2019 | by Steve Hanley
October 11th, 2019 by Steve Hanley
Welcome to the #Sludge Report, a new CleanTechnica service to our readers. In it, we will attempt to expose the breathtaking hypocrisy and glaring falsehoods spread by some of the world’s major corporations in pursuit of filthy lucre at the expense of the general welfare of the planet. Today’s installment focuses on a tweet by Bill McKibben about Wells Fargo Bank and a short video created by The Sierra Club.
Oily @WellsFargo has become one of the world's largest funders of fossil fuels. It's time for each of us to send a clear message: if "Oily Wells" won't divest from dirty energy, we will divest from them! Take action today: https://t.co/y5dbdxmFf3 pic.twitter.com/BGvEARAU1V
— Sierra Club (@SierraClub) October 10, 2019
Wells Fargo, you may recall, got its chestnuts roasted recently when it was revealed senior managers encouraged underlings to open multiple fake accounts in the name of customers and then charge them outrageous fees to maintain those bogus accounts. Less than a year ago, Wells Fargo settled a lawsuit pertaining to those fake accounts for $575 million.
That was after it embarked on a new publicity campaign designed to assure customers it has seen the error of its ways and returned to its ethical roots. Here’s an video entitled “Trust” created by the ad agency BBDO to kick off that rebranding campaign.
The Sierra Club is asking people to stop doing business with banks like Wells Fargo that fund fossil fuel activities. You can find out more at the Bank Fossil Fuel Free page on its website.
Bank Fossil-Free: Pledge to Divest from Banks Funding Climate Change!
Big banks like Wells Fargo pour billions of dollars into fossil fuels and the companies behind dangerous projects — like the Keystone XL and Line 3 tar sands pipelines — that threaten Indigenous rights, our global climate, and the health of our communities. If your money is invested with big banks like Wells Fargo, it is helping to fund projects like these and the environmental and human rights abuses that come with them.
Each of us has the power to fight back by making sure our own money is not invested with banks that finance this destruction. Whether you can move $5 or $50,000, you can send a clear message by moving your money to a socially-responsible bank or credit union that shares your values and does not finance fossil fuels. This growing movement has already divested millions of dollars from the big banks funding dirty pipelines. Now it’s your turn.
With your help, we will send a message to banks like Wells Fargo that there are consequences for their irresponsible actions, and that investing in dirty fossil fuel projects is bad business. Together, we can take back our power and invest in a future that benefits our communities, our economies, and our health.
Take action: Pledge to move your money out of Wells Fargo and other big banks funding dirty fuels!
Image: Sierra Club
The thought for today? If you have an account at Wells Fargo, walk in to any branch at your earliest convenience and close it. That includes credit card accounts as well. If you really want to get your point across, buy a quart of motor oil and leave it on the counter on the way out the door as a sign to other customers that Wells Fargo is a major sponsor of fossil fuel activity, including pipelines that transport the dirtiest of dirty fuels — the goop that comes from the Alberta tar sands.
Removing your money and closing your accounts is one small way you can let corporate America know you are mad as hell and you’re not going to take it any more!
Steve Hanley Steve writes about the interface between technology and sustainability from his home in Rhode Island and anywhere else the Singularity may lead him. His motto is, “Life is not measured by how many breaths we take but by the number of moments that take our breath away!” You can follow him on Google + and on Twitter.