Ahead of Annual Shareholders Meeting, AAPI Victory Alliance Demands Wells Fargo Cut Ties with the Gun Industry

WASHINGTON — On the eve of the Wells Fargo annual shareholders meeting, AAPI Victory Alliance renews calls for the bank to end its financial relationships with the gun industry. Wells Fargo has been the go-to bank for gun manufacturers and the National Rifle Association. Last month, AAPI Victory Alliance sent a letter to Wells Fargo CEO Charles Scharf urging the bank to cease transacting at scale with manufacturers of deadly weapons that have robbed too many AAPI lives.

AAPI Victory Alliance Executive Director Varun Nikore issued the following statement:

“Ahead of Wells Fargo’s 2023 Annual Meeting of Shareholders to discuss many important issues, we demand corporate responsibility around gun violence prevention be one of them. Today, we sent another letter to Wells Fargo asking that they divest from the NRA and the gun industry and meet with us to discuss their plans to do so.

“Mass shootings, such as those that took place in Atlanta and Monterey Park, have caused enormous distress in the AAPI community. Gun manufacturers who continuously capitalize on and profit from anti-Asian hate – by arming extremists with deadly weapons – must be held responsible for their role in this violence. And without banks like Wells Fargo to provide them with a steady source of financing, the gun industry would not be able to flourish.

“When Americans bank with a financial institution, they deserve to do so with the assurance that their hard-earned dollars will not fund a gun industry cartel that is taking the lives of their community members and loved ones. For the sake of our collective future, we cannot carry on business as usual. Wells Fargo must take responsibility for the violence they enable and cut ties with the NRA and gun manufacturing industry.”

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Background

•  On March 17, 2023, AAPI Victory Alliance sent a letter to the CEO of Wells Fargo Bank demanding that Wells Fargo stop financing the gun industry.

•  On April 16, 2023, AAPI Victory Alliance and March For Our Lives hosted a rally in San Francisco. You can watch, listen and read about the rally here.

•  On April 24, 2023, AAPI Victory Alliance sent a follow-up letter to the CEO of Wells Fargo Bank to inform them about this campaign.

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