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caioning sponsored by public affairs televisn >> this week "bill moyers journal." >> moyers: peoe take to the streets. >> sdenly we have a growing vement of people who want to geout on the streets, put pressuren the banks. ey recognize it's a david an goliath fight and it's oy through their action that wee gointo make things happen. >> though it a david and goliath figh we should remember that sometimes david wins. >> moyers: and a pple's history of the united states >> docracy doesn't come from the top. it comes frothe bottom. democry is not what governments doit's what people . >>oyers: historian, howard zinn. stay tuned >> from our studios in new yo, bill moyers. >>oyers: welcome to the journal. there's only one w to counter the power organized money, and that with the power of organized pele. this ithe theme of our oadcast this week. we've l seen in recent months how the insunce companies, the drug cartels, walltreet bankers, corporate lobes and other powerful interts are rehing deep into their pockets to stifle efforts at reform. and they've been wning. it's been a year since t big financial firms ew a hole in the economy antook down the jobs, wages,ensions and homes of milons of people. they wou have gone down too-- devoured by thr own greed-- were it not for the taxpayer bailout. bunow, major banks and securities firms are on ack to patheir employees up to $140 biion in compensation this year. that's me than the combined budgets of the dartments of commerce, educatn, energy, housing and ban development, e national science foundatio d the environmental protecti agency. goldman sachs-he godfather of wall stree is projected to earn around $45 billion is year inet income with its ployees slated to receive an average paycheck of $7,000. but get this. just thiweek, goldman nounced that its top 30 executiv will forego their usual big cash bonus in sponse to public outrage over raway compensation dls. ybe people in the streets ar getting througat last to wall street. here's whai mean. >> are you tired of predory lenders? aryou tired of sub-prime mortgages? are you tired of the bks? hallelujah. >> moyer you might have thought this was an old-me reval. >> somebody say "i'm tired! i'm tired!" >> moyers: but this was not about the life herfter, these people want a beer world in the re and now. >> banks got bailed ou we gotold out! >> moyers: so earliethis fall, from forecsure blighted california and small farming wns in iowa and the struggli suburbs ofhe east coast, they came tchicago to take on the financial giants whosereed and reckless gambling brought e american economy to its kns. >> wre losing jobs. we're losing state emploes. we're losing industry and businesses. we're losing farms and hom. and meanwhile, theseeople across the street are ying to divvy up their recd profits, in tenof millions of dollars rth of bonuses. and that not fair, it's not fair >> moyers: across the stet, the erican bankers association was lding its annual convention. the symbol, to theserotesters, of a system turned upside wn. >> what it appears is th banks are getting rich. some of the employees and offirs are getting raises while we'rseeing morhomes go under anpeople suffering in the community. what we' trying to do is to let the banks know, ey have more responsibility toake the money. they hava responsibility to help educate and to form and to worwith community groups to stop the forlosures. we need a moratorium on forecloses in the state. we need to addressany of the concerns of small businessesho are trying to keep aoat, able to get loans and aess the loans- the money thawas given to the banks. we need a flow down, wdon't need trickle down. we need a flow down at thi particular point. >> here chicago, in the last two years, we've h foreclosure filings double, in a two-yr period. forecloses were already a big problem in 26, but they jumped up to 20,000 fings in 2008. we have a neighborhoodn chicago thatas 200 new foreclosure fings this year per square me. so, communities are hurtg. that story's not gting out. these arthe same folks that ca up with the ideas that led to 30 years of deregation, and we've seen how that work out. they created the economi isis. they created t foreclosure crisis. th needed billions and billions of ilout dollars. and now they're lobbying to ll coon sense reforms who would prect every day people. >> a.b.a you're the worst. time tput the people first! >> moyers: from the banker convention the protests moved on to thchicago offices of goldman sachs... >> goldman sucks! goman sucks! >> moyers: ...that globa goliath who's on track to vvy up the cpanies richest bonus booty ever. >> we're firedp! can't take it no me! >> you took our tadollars. we baileyou out. at least have considerion for the people whore flooding and feeding your bank accountsyour salaries. there's noompassion. there's ju their own self-interest,heir own greed. and they just want to contin with t same cycle, the same old thing. 's just if you have tide, yo ha the original tide, and then they lie and say, "we gothe new and better tide,but it's t a new and better tide, it' the same product. >>oyers: from there, it was nearby branch of wells fargo where protestersrowded into the bankobby and, for a short time, disrupted business as usua >> i'll te you what, the bankers havet seen anything. the bankers are joying the money that our goverent gave them. it's time for on main street to rea out to these folks and tell them, "we want real reform." and when do we wt it? >> now! when do we want it? >> now >> all we want is to havthem regulated. we need nks. goknows we need them. but they've goto do business in a decent fashion. d if they won't do it themselves, then the govnment has make them do it. >> we got to changthings. all these people, wee just regular pele. it's got to stop, that's why we're here. >> bust ! >>ig banks! >>ust up! big banks! >> moyers: their message forhe banks waclear and simple. >> clean up your act. enough is enough. we've caught onto ur game. know whatou're doing. we're not fools. people know it. clean upour act. and don't be acandal to us and the world. >> moyers:hey're up against the powerful lobby of the financial servicesndustry. it spentore than $220 million in lobbyinso far in 2009. most oit directed at stopping reforms in wasngton that would hold banks accountable a hopefully prevent a repeatf last yeas disaster. >> what we'rdoing here in chicago ought to be repliced across the country. weeed to get out by the millns to protest, to demand that this industry, in particular, the bankin industry, that is spending $0, $250 million lobbyg against bank refm, this is unacceptable. and think average americans need tunderstand that. >> i think it's ha for them to ignore our message athis int. because everyday, th crowd gets larger, and every dayhe american people get angrie and everyday we are shoutingo congress and to the esident. and every day thathat happens is a day tt the bankers cannot ignore. >> it's longer people like me feeling that it's my flt. you feel that, "oh, maybi went to school for thwrong type of stud" but, you know that the's some rce bigger than you out ther that been sopping up your money and not ging you an opportunity to te advantage of the americanream. >> we are fiting against big money inrests. we don't have the billions o dollars. but weave legs, we still have voices, and we're ing to continue to march and 're ing to continue to speak out and toend a message, quite frankly, to democrats in washington that, oe again, the novemberlection was a referendum on the d practices that have beenepudiated, that have been discdited. it's time for a new chter in american politics. it's up to tm to make a decision. are they gng to listen to the people on the ground here,r are they goingo listen to the nkers? that's the question day. anwe can say that even in chicago, oba's hometown, that many peoe are beginning to question hisommitment to serious, sweepg reforms. >> moyers: so, as weeard here timend again, they still cling to the aacity of hope. >> when enough people get acve, things will happen. i think obama wi act if people will ph him. but we'vgot to push him. he said that himse, he said, "you push us." and i think we're readto do that. >> the one thing we haveour own politicacurrency, is people. and ople are ready to hit the streets. today is a beginni of a much larger set omobilizations that are gointo take place all acrosshe country. we're just getng started. >> moyers: witme now is george gale, one the community organize you just saw in our port from chicago. 's executive director of national people's acon, a group dedicated torganizing for social justice. also with us is heathebooth, who's been a political aivist and orgazer for 40 years, ever since she joined theivil rights movent in the '60s. she's currently rector of americans r financial reform and president of t midwest acemy, a training program for leaders and organize. welcome to you both. >> oh, wderful to be here. >> thank you. >> moyers: george, y say at the end of that report, "wre not going awaywe're just arting." who's we? >> who is we? "we" is everay people from ross the country. we saw sething really interestinhappen over the course of the summer we were havingeetings with the federal reserve. and whattarted out as people coming out around predaty nding and foreclosures start evolve. and sudden retirees were coming out. saying, "how come my pensis been depleted 30%?" peopleho'd lost their jobs were coming out. people who werworried about ste budget cuts were coming out these meetings. and i think more and more pele are making connection around their own econic insecurity to what's hpening with the banks and on wall street. so, suddly we've got a growing movement of peopleho want to geout on the streets, put pressure on the banks. they recnize it's a david and goliath fight. d it's only through their action that 're going to make things happen. i think people d't believe right now that tir members of congre are going to lead the way. they're quesoning whether obamwill lead the way. and it's becoming re clear that they' got to lead the y. >> moyers: heatheryou're based in wasngton. george is in chicago. whare americans for financial reform? >> well, it's the ght of main street against walstreet. and it'snified both from the grassroots working closelyith georgend other grassroots ganizations. and also fol in d.c. so, we've got trade ions, vil rights organizations, religious organizations, invests. and we badly would like to see the values of decency, democracy, aountability, transparency, and fairness i the financial system. that system shou work for us, for the amican public >>oyers: those people we saw in chicago, wh did you sense they were feing when they were there? >> a number of pces have really been ravaged by foreclosures. so, we do have commuties that st have intense foreclosure coentration. the forecloses keep rising. and they see ban doing less. and th you've got more people in desrate financial situations, whicturns people toayday lenders. which senar durbin called it-- the event in chicago the bottom feeders of anndustry that i would say is like cha fu of bottom feeders. >> moyers: pday lenders are? >> payday lenderare these little shops, these litt storefronts that make 400% terest loans to people. e average $300 payday loan ends up costing the borrow 00. so, 's a classic, you know, leing scam that actually stripsealth from people and from communities. so, actually more anmore people a having to go to payd lenders, because they want to keep t lights on, get their groceries pa. they want to save theihousing. , people are seeing more and more abu, more and more scams at the local level. and i think people a angry for a few reasons. one, the relationship with their nk is not a good relationship. weere having a conversation witheople across the country the other day. and they were like, "wt if we had bas that actually helped people build wealth?" like thawas a radical idea. versus banks that e stripping wealth from peop. you know, high interest tes and overdraffees. >> moyers: so, you areeally up against so very powerful interestn washington, heather. i mean, the financial sect spent $110 million lobbyin the health care sector $3 million. the energyector $100 million. alin the second quarter of this yr. what mes you think you stand a chance up against ose kind of forces >> wl, first of all as george rightly id, it's though. it's a david and golth fight. should remember that sometimes david wins. especially when it'sot... >> moys: a clean shot right beeen the eyes? >> andt's not just david, it's jane andue and all sorts of lks getting together, becaus we really do have a people power, especially in t finaial industry. there s really never been an organized, popul protest. this has been a secretemple, as bl greider referred to it. whe... >> moyers: "washinon post" report who's covered the fed for a long time,ight? absolutely. and as he and othersave said, this was kepsecret in the back rooms. ght now we still don't know what actually going on. we don't know what happened th that money. >> moyers: youean the tarp money? the bailout money? we d't... >> absoluty. >>oyers: all of it hasn't been accounted for, right? >> not at all. in ft, we need to audit the federal reserve. what did they with the money? at happened to this money? and what's happened now is tt people are jning together and are saying let's take that curtain away. let's open it to the sunlight. and people are startinto organize. we saw it clearly chicago. we see it in the last few eks mae 150 demonstrations around the countr >> likon black friday, a bunch of clergwent to take over and shutown a payday lending office in oomington, illinois, led by... >> moyers: black friday ing? >> being the dayfter thanksgiving when everybody se is outpending money. thesfolks decided it was time to go shut down a payday lder. and say, "hey, until we ve a coumer financial protection agency, wee going to protect ourselves. we're going to be thfirst line of defse in our community." on ts last saturday in iowa, 60 people took over payday lendinbranch there and said, "enough is enough." so, a lot of the aion, and i thinthe kind of action that leads to trumovement building, and we really need a pular movement if we're going to w this kind of fight. we canlay in the game of inches in d.c.but if we really want to move this in terms of feet and yards, it's going to takeart popular unrest that the dia cannot deny happening across t country. and it's staing to happen all over the place. i think as progresve organizers, thiss our chance bring more people into our tent, to hp develop a more clear analysis around at's happing with big time capital and ungulated corporations. so, i think have a job to bring as many ople into the tent. ere are a lot of republicans that came outo chicago, particularly family farmerwho stl, regardless of like politicaaffiliation, said, "unregulated capal is not good fome." in part, i think they come togetherhen you combine... you say noo bailouts, yes to jobs. that people are hurting. we're at 10% unemployment. anactually real unemployment's probably 15% oeven more. the foreclosures are incasing now driv by that unemployment, while the bankare making these billion dollaronuses. so pple are furious. >> moyers: how do u get the members of congress to fl what we sensed in the streets tt they are ltening to these ople? well, we know that the amou of moneyn politics often domina the political dialogue. and so, we're tryingo bring a people power, asell as the inside relationsps. it's an outside/side relationship. >> what we're trying to is really organizaround a set of eas. and wh we think a real successfulovement would be moreround an allegiance to ideas over party. and some of that'll contn prests. but it's really about a visi of what we wanto create, around aore fair and just economy. so, right now, think a lot of e action is around banking reform. but i think we're buildinghe foundation for a big movent around an economy that serveus al heather knows, there was a period in the in theield of community organing, where the different networks didn't alys work that well together. and the ople that we served were not served well by at lack of collaboration. but there's a new genetion of leadersh that's trying to break through the old barriers and say, "he what if we came gether? whatf we started to aggregate all the power thate're doing around the coury into somethinmuch bigger?" so, m more... we're definitely on t ropes right now in financial form. it's a tough fight i'm re optimistic than ever that we're in a position to rn the de. >> change isard. partlyecause money largely dominates politics, media, a so many factorof our life. these opsition forces, the insurance companies,he big financial interests, theig energy companies. they're stilaround. but this ia new moment. actually believe that it is historic opening. not with a grantee of change, but with a promi that there's opening for change if we seize . partly because theres a crisis. and people are saying, "you' goto do something about it." partly because t old ideas don't work of sayi just deregulation. free market wiout really concerabout real people. or the greed igood spirit. it's pary because there is a neleadership that is turning the country. we are now movinin a new direction with big ideasround important agendas. on health ca, on climate, on jobs, anon financial reform. >> mers: but here in new york this weeat the big annual meetg of the supporters of "the nation gazine," one of the progressive mazines in the country, you couldeally feel the division bween people who say we've t to stay with obama, bause he is the agent of change. and people w are saying, "wait a minute, he'sade his peace withhe wall street interests. he toohis first big appointments tthe financial system from the very peoe who brought this about." how far do youo in criticizing obama or praisg obama, when he seems to bcutting the corners a lot of the agenda he was elected to achieve? >> you know,hese kinds of disions are present in all movements. they're present the tea baggers. and they're prent in movements for progresse change. you know, backn the 1960s, even forhe big march on shington with dr. king that ma people remember, before that mch, there was a whole debate. should they low john lewis-- whwas seen as a dangerous radical, part of the stude nonviolent cooinating commite-- should they let john lewis, who's now a congressma.. >> moyers: right. >>..should they let him speak at that marcon washington? because he was going to critize a young and dynamic and arismatic and hopeful young prident, at that point, president kennedy? and in fac they decided he should speak. and he was also rt of that dialue, because he was represenng the voice of people in s.n.c.c., out in e people in misssippi, in alabama, and otheplaces around the country. and so, that difference of opinion part of the healthy, internal creative conflict >> moyer so, how dyou grade obama rit now on banking refo? "a", "b," "c," "d," or a unk? >> he certainly moving us in a positive broad directionor ange of for regulation, for consumer protection agency, r trying to address thisasino economy and gederivatives regulated d controlled. now, there are oer areas in which we tnk we have to go much further. there are questions abouthe federal reserve. we think it does need be democratized and really shod function for the people and notust for the largest banks, who larly control it >> moyers: so, "a," "b," "" "d or "f"? >> i think t grade depends in large part on what we do. u know, obama himself said that he doest... he's not asking us to belve in him. he's askg us to believe in ourselves and our abily to organize and mobize. we have to be therand engage the grading is not donyet