Calling Upon Congress to Enact HR 1489 , The Resolution of Glass Steagall

WHEREAS, the League of United Latin American Citizens is this nation’s oldest and largest Latino organization, founded in Corpus Christi, Texas on February 17, 1929; and

WHEREAS, LULAC throughout its history has committed itself to the principles that Latinos have equal access to opportunities in employment, education, housing and healthcare; and

WHEREAS, in response to the Great Depression of the1930's, the Congress enacted the Federal Banking Act of 1933, known as the Glass-Steagall Act, that separated commercial banking from investment and speculative banking; and

WHEREAS, the Glass-Steagall Act successfully protected American citizens and jobs from 1933-1999, when it was repealed, which then allowed commercial banks to move into investment banking, insurance and other speculative enterprises, creating banks that became "too big to fail;" and

WHEREAS, financial bubbles were created over the past decade in the tens of trillions of dollars, that collapsed over the last three years, creating hardship and suffering for communities around the nation; and

WHEREAS, Wall Street has been bailed out with tens of trillions of dollars of taxpayer money, but Main Street is in a state of ever deepening job loss and crisis; and

WHEREAS, HR 1489, THE RETURN TO PRUDENT BANKING, AND RESTORATION OF GLASS STEAGALL has been introduced into the Congress with 17 sponsors, both Democrats and Republicans; and has been endorsed by the AFL-CIO, the Machinists Union, city councils and state legislators around the nation; and

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that LULAC, meeting in convention in Cincinnati, Ohio, in July 2011, hereby endorses HR 1489, and calls upon members of Congress to co-sponsor and enact HR 1489, to restore the protections of the Glass-Steagall Act.

Approved this 1st day of July 2011.

Margaret Moran
LULAC National President