Opinion: Cash Is Disappearing, Stranding the Unbanked in Crisis
Inside-Sources
By InsideSources.com
Published 2 years ago on
September 25, 2021
In this Aug. 11, 2019, photo, U.S. currency and credit cards sit on a table at a restaurant in New Orleans. Credit card companies want to turn your unused credit line into cash that you can borrow for things like home improvements or unexpected expenses. But accepting this loan offer may not be the best choice for your wallet or your credit score. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

Share

An assuring legend is printed on U.S. bills: “This note is legal tender for all debts, public and private.” I have always been glad to know that Uncle Sam is there for me; got my back, so to speak.

Llewellyn King

Opinion

But for 14.1 million American adults, that statement is a lie because bills are being pushed aside by bank cards, credit cards, and online payment systems like PayPal. The stranded are the unbanked, the unplasticized.

The unbanked aren’t axiomatically the homeless, the undocumented immigrants, or those who have fallen through the cracks. They are also people with jobs who pay their taxes, and many of whom live exemplary lives but don’t have bank accounts.

That may be because they don’t trust banks or — and this is a big factor for the working poor who are unbanked — they feel having a bank account is too expensive. They have been charged disproportionate fees for bouncing a check, for late payments, or for any of the other creative ways banks go after fees to enhance their earnings, like the high ones for using an ATM.

However, if you choose to keep your money under the mattress or in the breadbox, you elect to be the financial equivalent of undocumented. Essentially, you are immobilized.

Travel is Nearly Impossible for the Unbanked

All this came to mind while I was checking in online for a recent United Airlines flight. I learned that I would need to save a form of payment for boxed meals and snacks before I boarded because I wouldn’t be able to use credit cards while in flight. United maintains, “We are working to make your trip more enjoyable while maintaining a safer and more touchless travel experience.” In the time of COVID-19, that’s fine with me. But the corollary is they don’t take cash — no credit card, no snack.

Most airport eateries are going to ordering by computer — again, no credit card, no food. I went to one of those wired restaurants at Newark Liberty International and wondered about the unbanked: How would they feed a child if they didn’t know cash wasn’t accepted?

For the unbanked, travel is nearly impossible. First, you would have to go to the airport and buy your ticket with cash. But would they take it? Airline offices are no longer scattered about, and most travel agencies are now virtual. To get to and from the airport, you may have to take an expensive taxi — if one can be found, as you won’t be riding with Uber or Lyft.

Credit Card Dependency

Want to stay in a hotel when you arrive at your destination? You won’t have a reservation because you can’t make one without a credit card. Then you must beg the hotel to let you stay.

Once in San Francisco, I had to pay cash for a hotel room because I had lost my wallet. They gave me a room (I was in their guest file because I had stayed there on a previous trip); took a cash deposit for the room, which my office had sent through Western Union; and instructed me not to charge any items to it, not a drink, a meal, or a phone call.

Welcome to the world of plastic, as in credit-card dependency. Who would have thought that your freedom was linked to a small, plastic card?

Burden of Being Unbanked

The road from being unbanked to being banked is littered with obstacles and it takes years to build credit for, say, a new car or a mortgage. The person who has no bank account has no credit history — and that means has little official existence.

There are hidden costs for being unbanked. Your paycheck will have to be cashed somewhere and check-cashing services, like payday lenders, charge fees that can be as high as 3 percent of the check. Also, the unbanked are victimized by dubious operators, performing illegal banking services and other crookery.

The burden of being unbanked is limitless.

About the Writer

Llewellyn King is executive producer and host of “White House Chronicle” on PBS. He wrote this for InsideSources.com.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

How California’s Prized Solution for Methane Gas Is Backfiring on Farmers

DON'T MISS

Many Californians Rely on This Farmers Market Program. Newsom Wants to Cut It

DON'T MISS

Carbon Capture Storage Is Key to California’s Economy & Energy Future

DON'T MISS

CA Leaders Must Address Falling Enrollment & Rising Absenteeism in Public Schools

DON'T MISS

Shady Business Owners Can Hide Behind LLCs. CA Should Make Their Identities Public.

DON'T MISS

Sunshine Week: Growing Secrecy Limits Government Accountability

DON'T MISS

SLO Moves to End Gerrymandering, Yet Much of California Still Lets Politicians Draw Voting Maps

DON'T MISS

Sunshine Week: A Healthy Democracy Requires Your Support of Local Journalism

DON'T MISS

SoCal’s Huge Logistics Industry Faces Backlash Over Wages and Pollution

DON'T MISS

No Politician Alive Can ‘Save Democracy.’ That Job Is Exclusively for ‘We the People.’

No data was found

The 49ers Have Been Docked a 2025 Fifth-Round Draft Pick for an Accounting Error

6 hours ago

Fresno Bank Sued. It Allegedly Helped Bitwise Commit Fraud.

bitwise /

6 hours ago

How California’s Prized Solution for Methane Gas Is Backfiring on Farmers

environment /

9 hours ago

Supreme Court Seems Favorable to Biden Administration Over Efforts to Combat Social Media Posts

10 hours ago

Putin Extends Rule in Preordained Russian Election After Harshest Crackdown Since Soviet Era

10 hours ago

Ohtani to Begin Throwing Program Soon. Roberts Hints Dodgers Star Might Play in the Field

10 hours ago

Trump: Some Migrants Are ‘Not People’, There’ll Be a ‘Bloodbath’ if I Lose

10 hours ago

Tech Lawyer and Philanthropist Nicole Shanahan Rumored as RFK Jr.’s VP Pick

news /

11 hours ago

March Madness is Here. UConn, Purdue, Houston and North Carolina Get Top Seeding in NCAA Tournament

11 hours ago

Crafts Retailer Joann Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy as Consumers Cut Back on Pandemic-Era Hobbies

12 hours ago

Records Show That Valley Children’s Leader Suntrapak’s Pay Exceeds $5 Million

■Valley Children’s paid CEO Todd Suntrapak $5.2 million in 2021. The hospital also gave him a $5 million forgivable home loan. ■The Va...
Healthcare /

5 hours ago

3 days ago

Realtor Association Settles Lawsuit on Commission Rules. Fresno Broker Fears the End of Market Transparency

3 days ago

Prosecutor Leaves Georgia Election Case Against Trump After Relationship With District Attorney

3 days ago

Rory McIlroy’s 65: 10 Birdies, 2 Tee Shots in the Water, 1 Testy Dispute

3 days ago

Aaron Donald Announces His Retirement After a Standout 10-Year Career With the Rams

3 days ago

New Book Explores the Myths, Truths and Legacy of the Macho Man

4 days ago

Baseball Superstar Ohtani and His Wife Arrive in South Korea for Dodgers-Padres MLB Opener

4 days ago

India’s New Citizenship Law Excludes Muslims. Here’s What to Know

4 days ago

US, G-7 Allies Warn Iran to Back Off Deal to Provide Russia Ballistic Missiles or Face New Sanctions

Photo of San Francisco 49ers' Arik Armstead

4 days ago

Former 49ers DT Arik Armstead Agrees to a 3-Year, $51 Million Deal with the Jaguars, AP Source Says

4 days ago

Supreme Court Rules Public Officials Can Sometimes Be Sued for Blocking Critics on Social Media

Search