Jesse Binga (April 10, 1865 – June 13, 1950) was a prominent American businessman who founded the first privately owned African-American bank in Chicago.[1] Binga recalled coming to Chicago in the 1890s with $10 in his pocket. By the 1920s he was a bank president and major real estate owner. Unwilling to conform to de facto, private real-estate segregation, white real estate interests sometimes opposed him violently.[2] After his bank failed in the Great Depression, Binga was eventually charged with embezzlement, a controversial prosecution in the African American community. Protests and public petitions helped lead to his early release. He was granted a full pardon in 1941.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Chicago Tributewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Grossman, Ron. "Jesse Binga opened doors for African-American Chicagoans". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2018-12-02.