Green Money Overdraft: Philadelphians withdraw from mountaintop removal supporter PNC

EQAT members prepare to withdraw PNC accounts at their June 1 protest. | photo by Amanda StillwellHow green is your money? Well, if you bank with PNC then unfortunately, not very.

It’s no secret that local banking giant supports mountaintop removal. In fact, they’re the second largest bank to be financing the practice, providing more than $500 million in loans. But the local organization Earth Quaker Action Team (EQAT) is looking to change that.

In our May issue we wrote about EQAT’s “Green Your Money” initiative—a campaign to encourage Philadelphians to pull their accounts from PNC. As part of this initiative, EQAT proposed a 90-day period for PNC to reconsider their actions. Now, with that period over and still no comment from PNC, EQAT is taking their action to the next level.    

Last Friday, June 1, a group gathered in front of PNC’s regional headquarters in downtown Philadelphia where a number of individuals and organizations withdrew their accounts. So far, EQAT has tracked $3 million pledged to withdrawal as a part of “Green Your Money.” This sum includes organization like the Delaware chapter of the Sierra Club, which has already announced that they will close their account with PNC. They plan to encourage their affiliates to do the same, and these private accounts will only increase the total amount withdrawn.

The demonstration last week followed a recent 300-mile “Green Walk for Jobs and Justice” from the PNC Philadelphia regional headquarters to the national headquarters in Pittsburgh. This 16-day journey was used to build the movement and gather withdrawal pledges.

Join the Green Your Money initiative now and take the pledge to stop banking with PNC. For more information on EQAT, their work and mountaintop removal, visit their website at equat.wordpress.com.