Page 2 The Skanner November 18, 2015
Challenging People to Shape
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Opinion
Dr. Ben Carson and Lessons from Clarence Thomas
I
will never forget the debate
that engulfed Black Ameri-
ca at the time of the nomina-
tion of Clarence Thomas to
the US Supreme Court.
On the one side was the
fact of his conservative re-
cord and his not having any
semblance of a history as a
staunch advocate for African
American rights.
On the other hand, he was
(and remains) genetically a
“
Bill
Fletcher Jr.
The Global
African
How terribly wrong this
analysis proved to be.
Since the appointment of
Justice Thomas, there has
I am already hearing those who
wish to make excuses for him or to
refrain from criticisms
person of African descent.
There were those who argued,
quite forcefully, that the mere
fact of his being genetically
a person of African descent
should be the deciding factor
in whether to support him
because, as was argued at the
time, the moment that he had
the job security of a Supreme
Court appointment, African
Americans could count on
him to do the right thing.
been little, if any, indication
that his genetic connection
to Black America has trans-
lated into decisions in favor
of Black America. Justice
Thomas has repeatedly sid-
ed against the interests of
the majority of Black Amer-
ica, and actually, he has been
quite unapologetic about it.
Which bring us to Presiden-
tial candidate Dr. Ben Carson.
I am already hearing those
who wish to make excuses for
him or to refrain from criti-
cisms.
There are those who are so
appropriately proud of what
he has accomplished as a neu-
rosurgeon that they are — in-
appropriately — prepared to
turn a blind eye to the policies
that he advocates, not to men-
tion some of the observations
that he has offered.
Yet one does not have to dig
too deeply to see that his poli-
tics are extremely right-wing
and that he is prepared to reg-
ularly take stands that deny
the extent — if not the reali-
ty — of the racist oppression
under which Black America
continues to exist.
Carson has pleased Fox
News and the Tea Party in
his condemnation of #Black-
LivesMatter and the move-
ment for Black Lives, accus-
ing #BlackLivesMatter of
bullying.
He has also participated in
the demonization of the late
Michael Brown, killed by
the Ferguson Police. What
is that about? He has com-
pared the Affordable Health
Act (“Obamacare”) to slav-
ery. How can anyone in their
right mind make a compari-
son between chattel slavery
and a piece of legislation that
has increased healthcare for
more than 17 million people?
Carson actually goes be-
yond Justice Thomas in his
unusual behavior. It is not
just that Carson sides against
Black America, but that he
also seems to feel that he can
say whatever is on his mind.
The recent exchange about
the Egyptian Pyramids is an
example. His conclusion that
the Pyramids were built by
Joseph for the storing of grain
has no scientific basis, yet this
Presidential candidate seems
to feel unconstrained by sci-
ence, research and, indeed, by
the truth.
As we get deeper into the
election season it is import-
ant to keep these points in
mind. One can always hope
Dr. Carson will rediscover the
realities facing Black Ameri-
ca, but the smart money actu-
ally suggests the opposite.
Ohioans Lose $500 Million to Payday and Car Title Loan Fees
D
espite a landslide voter
decision in 2008 to cap
payday lending rates at
28 percent, the state’s
small-dollar, high-cost lend-
ing has continued to grow
and now doubles the amount
of fees charged a decade ago.
Each year Ohio consumers
who only needed a small dol-
lar loan wind up with more
than $502 million in fees
drained from their pockets.
Although state regulators
as well as the legislature have
the authority to enforce the
voter-approved 28 percent
rate cap, neither has exer-
cised that power for seven
years.
These key findings appear
in a new report, Buckeye Bur-
den: An Analysis of Payday
and Car Title Lending in Ohio,
from the Center for Responsi-
ble Lending (CRL).
“Our findings in this report,
show that the majority of pay-
day lenders now offer both
payday and car title loans in
Ohio. Predatory lenders are
Charlene
Crowell
NNPA
Columnist
doubling down on their ef-
forts to offer harmful prod-
ucts,” said Delvin Davis, a CRL
“
Court ruled the use of the Sec-
ond Mortgage Loan Act by car
title lenders was within the
law; but did not address the
CSO usage.
In the meantime, high-cost
lending in Ohio has grown
to 836 storefront locations.
Only five payday lenders con-
trol 77.5 percent of the state’s
market, operating 735 stores:
Advance
America,
Cash
Predatory lenders are doubling
down on their efforts to offer
harmful products
senior researcher and report
co-author.
“Rather than operating un-
der the intended regulatory
structures, payday and car
title lenders exploit Ohio’s
Second Mortgage Loan Act
and Ohio’s Credit Services Or-
ganization (CSO) Act to con-
tinue their debt trap lending,”
states the report.
In 2014, Ohio’s Supreme
America, Community Choice
Financial, Check Into Cash
and Ace Cash Express.
For an average $300 payday
loan, these lenders charge
triple-digit storefront loans
ranging from 228 to 718 annu-
al percentage rates (APRs).
Car title loans, typically due
in 30 days, vary in amounts
ranging from $1,000 to as
much as $5,000, and terms up
to seven months. Depending
upon terms offered, a $2,000
loan could wind up costing
$4,407 to totally repay or
$1,959 for a six-month loan of
$1,000.
CRL’s report notes how nei-
ther car title nor payday loans
take into account a borrow-
er’s ability to repay. Loan fees,
however, will be swiftly ac-
cessed via checking accounts
for payday borrowers and car
repossessions for title loans.
If payday borrowers fail to
keep an adequate checking
account balance, loan fees can
lead to additional overdraft
charges or involuntary ac-
count closures. Similarly, if a
title loan becomes delinquent,
the lender can choose to take
the car.
Recently more than 100
Ohio groups wrote the Con-
sumer Financial Protection
Bureau CFPB) about the
state’s disturbing growth of
predatory lenders. In its rec-
ommendations, CRL also urg-
es CFPB to enact strong rules
to end the debt
traps generated
by payday and
car title loans.
Requiring
a
borrower’s
ability to repay
a loan, limiting
the amount of
time
lenders
can keep bor-
rowers in debt,
and curbs on
re-borrowing
or refinanced
loans were all
among the spe-
cific initiatives
CRL advocates.