Financial Justice: The People's Campaign to Stop Lender Abuse

(Hardback)

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Description

This provocative and accessible narrative recounts the inside story of how a broad-based people's campaign was mobilized and subsequently succeeded in pushing Congress to create a consumer financial regulator with clout. What would Congress doif anythingto tame Wall Street and the nation's lenders following the financial meltdown of 2008 This book tells the true story of how an alliance of consumer, civil rights, labor, fair lending, and other progressive groups emerged to effectively challenge Wall Street and its official protectors and to win substantial new legislative reformsactions that resulted in the Dodd-Frank Act and its path-breaking Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Based largely on in-depth interviews with the leading activists involved in the campaign, Financial Justice: The People's Campaign to Stop Lender Abuse taps into the world of contemporary citizen movements to present evidence into the conditions that determine the success and failure of social movement campaigns. It goes well beyond general, global variables, such as "effective management," to show how the formal and informal rules adopted by a campaign can serve to preclude fragmentation and incoherence.

Reviews

Financial Justice portrays a lively, in-depth narrative of the people waging the battle for consumer finance protection and their victories, setbacks, and compromises. It brings to life the legislative history of the Act that created the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) by illustrating the work of activists, policy advocates, and policymakers involved in the creation of the CFPB. . . . With all its attention to detail, this book is a valuable asset to anyone researching the history of the Dodd-Frank Act and the CFPB. * American Association of Law Libraries *
The book, based on solid research and interviews with Elizabeth Warren and campaign advocates, has fascinating chapters dealing with the legislative struggles showing how the activists held wavering members of Congress accountable for key votes, while addressing the larger issue of how social movements can contribute to progressive political change. * The Huffington Post *
A very readable account of the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau . . . authors do an excellent job of describing the congressional maneuvering on both sides in both houses, as well as the work of the activists and business interests in shaping the final outcome. Very informative . . . highly recommended. * Choice *
While the future of the CFPB is uncertain, Kirsch and Mayer's book provides a good guide to how the agency came to be despite the odds stacked against it. * Deseret News *
The authors should be commended for their recognition of the need for an empirical study here and for the skill and thoroughness they employed in getting the job done during an especially contentious time for the US Congress. * Journal of American Culture *

Author Bio

Larry Kirsch is an economist and managing partner of IMR Health Economics. Robert N. Mayer, PhD, is professor in the Department of Family and Consumer Studies at the University of Utah.