Report Analyzes Area Banks’ Adherence to Lending, Community Investment Laws

St. Louis Equal Housing and Community Reinvestment Alliance (SLEHCRA) is a coalition of non-profit and community organizations working to increase investment in low- and moderate-income communities, regardless of race, and in minority communities, regardless of income, by ensuring that banks are meeting their obligations under the Community Reinvestment Act and fair lending laws.

In August SLEHCRA released a report in conjunction with the 50th commemoration of the Jefferson Bank demonstrations.  Beginning onAugust 30, 1963, black and white community members and leaders demonstrated in front of Jefferson Bank and Trust to protest the bank’s lack of black employees as well as overall discriminatory employment practices in St. Louis.  The demonstrations were the largest act of civil disobedience in St. Louis and a key civil rights event in St. Louis history.

This report examines the state of bank reinvestment in St. Louis in the 50 years following the demonstrations. This analysis focuses on how the top twenty banks are serving the needs of low- and moderate-income communities and communities of color.  The report investigates the state of bank reinvestment by examining branch locations, home mortgage
lending, small business lending, community development lending, and employment diversity.

Click here to see the report.

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