JD at Get Rich Slowly has a link to Business Week’s Poverty Business article. It’s about the business of keeping poor people poor.
The authors were on On Point, an NPR radio program yesterday. It reinforces what’s in the story. Some more insight, and a Byrider spokesperson gets questioned by the host. Kind of interesting, but really, it only infuriates me.
Think back to Edwardian England and Debtor’s Prison. If such a thing existed today, I am certain that a disproportionate number of poor people would be in it after getting a payday loan or other usurious loan.
I know that I used to get direct deposit advances from Wells Fargo when I was in my ’20’s and barely scraping by in San Francisco on $27K a year. I know what the temptation is to get a little cash today rather than wait a week. But the fact that relaxed availability of credit is actually hurting more than simple poverty is appalling. Working poor shouldn’t be made even poorer because they are being taken advantage of by these organizations.
I feel like there should be a picket line against these places, like the way pro-lifers stand out in front of Planned Parenthood every week. Maybe that’s what the next DC area PF blogger outing should be.
Don’t get me wrong, lately I’ve turned into a borderline Libertarian on issues for all my crunchy liberal positions, but this seems to push way beyond the Pale of blaming the people who take the loans. It’s like saying, well would you like to freeze or starve this week because you can’t pay both the utility and food bills? Any sensible person would take the payday loan and worry about staving off imminent starvation or freezing to death. (Let’s get real people, that is often the choice poor people are making. Ok, maybe not in May. I’ll concede that.)
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I’d join in on that picket line. Those payday loan places make me crazy… or sick… or crazy and sick. Ugh!
I also listened to the podcast at iTunes.
I don’t the objective or initiative is to keep the poor, poor, as much as it is to corner a niche. Or, capitalize on a certain demographic.