For payday loan borrowers and consumer and civil rights activists, this August 19 was supposed to be the end of payday lending’s nearly inevitable debt …

PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA By CHARLENE CROWELL WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. House of Representatives broke the hearts of a broad and diverse coalition of …

By CHARLENE CROWELL Fair lending will be paramount for the nation’s consumer financial cop on the beat in the new year. Mortgage and student loan …

CHARLENE CROWELL When it comes to consumer complaints on credit and lending, debt collection generates more criticism than any other industry. This $13 billion industry …

By Charlene Crowell The fight for fair lending got a big boost on August 31 when a federal court rejected a payday loan collector’s attempt …

By CHARLENE CROWELL As another school year gets underway, the Department of Education recently announced a series of actions to better protect taxpayers and students …

By CHARLENE CROWELL If you are one of the 77 million Americans who are hounded each year by debt collectors, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau …

By CHARLENE CROWELL With 2,200 branches in every state, and added presence on 60 military installations – five located overseas – the NAACP’s grassroots reach …

While economists contend that the economic recession is over, the reality for much of Black America is starkly different. Racial disparities in unemployment and under-employment …

In recent months, this column has reported on a series of settlements reached between banks and finance companies with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and …