ACLU goes after Morgan Stanley

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in New York, is the first that connects racial discrimination to the securitization of mortgage-backed securities, which were sold to institutional investors and pension funds. It is also the first case where a prospective class of victimized homeowners is suing an investment bank directly rather than the subprime lender whose loans the bank bought.

While the case concerns lending abuses in Detroit, these practices were common throughout the financial services industry and victimized black and Latino neighborhoods nationwide, according to Anthony D. Romero, ACLU executive director.

"With this lawsuit, real victims of the subprime lending scandal are stepping forward to hold investment banks like Morgan Stanley accountable for the devastation the banks wrought in their lives and in our economy,” Romero said. “Illegal practices surrounding mortgage-backed securities robbed people of their homes, violated our civil rights laws and left all Americans holding the bag as our economy teetered on the brink of another Great Depression.”

“Congress enacted these civil rights statutes to require that banks like Morgan Stanley are responsible for ensuring that their policies and practices do not perpetuate historical patterns of discrimination and banks have the duty to provide a level playing field for all consumers,” noted Stuart Rossman, director of litigation at the National Consumer Law Center. “Ultimately, economic justice is a civil right in our country. This landmark case brought on behalf of African-American homeowners asserts their rights under those laws and seeks to protect the greater Detroit community from continuing to be burdened because of past acts and patterns of discrimination.”

On The Case

The ACLU lawsuit follows a spate of new litigation against Wall Street by U.S. federal and state authorities over banks' roles in triggering the financial crisis that began more than four years ago.

JPMorgan Chase & Co was sued last week by New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman for alleged subprime mortgage abuses at an investment bank that it purchased during the financial crisis.  The U.S. attorney in Manhattan filed fraud charges against Wells Fargo & Co two weeks ago for a "reckless pattern" of making questionable home loans that allegedly cost the government hundreds of millions of dollars in insurance settlements.

Well I'll tell ya this very fitting for the American tax payer bailed out these institution and now with your money are lobbing new laws to make them untouchable.
Seems like the untouchables are touchable. Isn't that something! Take the American tax payer money and instead of helping the crisis hire lobbyist in record numbers to fight regulation.

The sale of derivatives and swaps across the world was huge, so huge the Feds have spent $7.77 trillion, ah have you seen a dime of this?  With this type of finance sold around the world what the hell are the finance institution developing?  Like Pavlov's Dogs, salivating for the next bundle.  

An old saying, Bite the Hand that Feeds!

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