Banker Doesn’t Believe This Black Woman Is An Architect, So He Refuses To Cash Out Her Paycheck

A black woman from Seattle says she was humiliated by a bank clerk who refused to believe a check she was depositing was real.

Trish Doolin, 37, is a successful architect who recently moved to take a job with Nelson, Inc., who are based in the Emerald City.

After her first week of working with the firm, her direct deposit had not yet been set up for her to receive her salary.

So Trish decided to take a regular check to a branch of Key Bank.

But apparently banking whilst black requires further interrogation.

Because after depositing the check in person, Ms Doolin received a call from the bank asking her to come back. 

Confused, she returned to the branch where a manager took her aside to a cubicle. There he began to ask her a series of intrusive questions.

‘He asked my profession, and then asked why the company’s headquarters were in Philadelphia,’ Doolin said. ‘Then he asked if HR could verify that I was an employee there.’

The bank did not ask for any ID from the architect, and she was told she would have to wait as long as nine days while they ‘verified the funds.’

‘When I realized that I was defending who I was, trying to prove to someone who didn’t know who I was, I knew I was being discriminated against,’ Doolin told BuzzFeed.

‘It was just completely demeaning.’

Keen not to let things lie, and obviously wanting to receive the money she rightfully earned, Doolin called the bank on the phone to try and understand the problem. 

The bank flatly told her that they would have done the same to any customer. But after some more questioning they agreed to release the funds into her account.

‘I live in a world where, no matter what’s in my brain or purse, no matter how I wear my hair, no matter how fabulous I look when I walk out the door, I’m still black,’ she said to BuzzFeed.

‘People still clutch their purses when I walk past.’

Key Bank has released a statement saying the company ‘values diversity’ and does not ‘tolerate discrimination’. 

The company also stated that customers that are new to the bank may experience a longer hold period on their deposits. This occurs for the first 30 days that their accounts are open.