When I say you can’t con a con, by the second use of the word con I mean convict. I was a convict and I usually am smarter than everyone I encounter, IMHO. I was in prison for possession of $10 of heroin. Not for stealing. Yes, I make the distinction between my choices about my life vs. hurting others. But that’s another story. You know how I got tricked out of $200 last week? I believed the guy when he said if I loaned him the $ he would make me joint on his bank account and I would have access to his directly deposited social security check, for my repayment. I believed the bank when the bank said staff would not take sides in any joint account. The bank granted his request to lie to me should I ask if everything was ok. You see, he was overdrawn. The bank wanted it’s $600 back. If I had known that he intended to close the account and deny me access as soon as the check came in, I could’ve frozed the account unilaterally, interfering with the bank getting repaid. He told the bank on Thursday he intended to deny me access and close the account Monday. Saturday, I asked bank staff if everything was ok for me to access funds on Monday. They straight up lied. “Everything is a go!” In reality their notes told them to deny me access to the account pending his arrival to officially take me off the account. No wonder I noticed it took a conference of bank staffers huddled around the computer screen to dimy say, “no changes here!”
At the opening of business Monday. the same staffers from Saturday turned me away from the teller window, empty-handed in Monday at 9:20. All they claimed to know was there was no record of me being joint on any account. I’d have to ask him why. He hid until I exited the bank. He entered the bank and withdrew the money left after the overdraft was repaid and closed the account. I found out the whole back story when I returned that afternoon bc I had a suspicion the bank breached it’s own policies. I was right. Yet another manager told me the truth, including the times he made his requests. She remained silent when I asked if the bank deliberately lied; only raised her eyebrows. She did say that I could’ve taken out my $200 first thing Monday bc my cancellation was not official til he came in. But that’s not what I was told Monday morning. God, I am furious. One reason you can’t con a con is we learn the rules by heart. I was unprepared for cheating. This story is a perfect example of a time when I just about know they treated me one way bc I’m black and him another way bc he is white. I know it, but in a way, I don’t. What was it about my look that made these strangers willing to cheat me? Someone asked if I was showing too much cleavage with my lovely augmented breasts and I admit, too much skin could’ve been a factor. No matter what, they had no right to judge me unworthy of equal protection of their rules. Do I have any recourse?
