Posted: 03/23/09 01:51 PM [ET] A group of protesters upset with the American Bankers Association (ABA) for lobbying against a top priority managed to cause a lockdown of the high-powered organization's Connecticut Avenue offices Monday.
The 500 protesters representing National People's Action (NPA), a coalition of local groups known for head-on confrontations with Washington power brokers, visited the ABA and a top D.C. lobbying firm Monday to advocate for the Helping Families Save Their Homes in Bankruptcy Act, a bill that would amend certain bankruptcy laws.
The measure, currently in the Senate, is strongly opposed by banking groups, and a spokesman for NPA said the group went to ABA's offices to request a meeting to ask the industry's largest outpost in Washington to drop its opposition.
The incursion caused building security to briefly shut down elevators and close off the floor, according to both sides. An EMT was called briefly to the scene.