Citibank's Anti-Adult Business Policy
Posted at 11:26 AM Aug 19, 2008
After having accounts at Citibank for nine years, yesterday I ended my relationship with them after being rejected for checking and savings accounts for my business, Waking Vixen Productions, on the grounds that it is an adult company - and Citibank doesn't do business with adult companies.
There's more, plus a voicemail from Citibank, at my blog Waking Vixen:
...no one who objects to how I make my money is going to get their hands on it. That is fundamental.In a situation like this, I essentially have no legal recourse - the Citibank policy doesn’t go against any protected rights. Businesses are totally within their rights to discriminate against people who work in any sector of the adult industry, regardless of the legality of that work. But I can (and did) take my money elsewhere, and I told them exactly why.
This is something that people who work in all adult-related businesses should think about, and if you feel comfortable, ask companies that you do big business with if they have a policy on adult entertainment. Some will look at you like you’re crazy - money is money, who cares where it comes from? - and others will say that of course they don’t do business with people in adult. I’ve had this experience at post production houses too, when trying to get screening copies made of The Bi Apple.
--Audacia Ray
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