Stand in Solidarity with Oakland
Stand up against Goldman Sachs
On July 3, the City of Oakland told Goldman Sachs to re-negotiate a toxic "interest rate swap" costing the city $4 million per year or never do business with Oakland again. Wall Street banks -- bailed out by taxpayers -- are literally profiting off the fact that they tanked the economy, while cities all over America have been forced to close schools, libraries, and cut police.
The Federal Reserve lowered interest rates paid by Wall Street to promote growth, not decimate our communities, but Goldman is forcing Oakland to pay a locked-in interest rate of 5%, even though it pays nothing for the money it borrows. According to Goldman, the only way it will let the city out of its contract is to pay a $15 million penalty.
Anyone can see this is not right. Estimates show there are more than 1,100 swap deals out there costing taxpayers $2.5 billion per year. If other cities paying for toxic swaps follow Oakland's lead, Wall Street will have to start listening to Main Street.
Stand with Oakland and tell other cities facing similar crises "Fight back against Wall Street. Follow Oakland's lead."
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