By: Robbie Whelan

I took this picture Wednesday at the Baltimore Homeownership Preservation Coalition‘s 2009 foreclosure prevention workshop.

The event was held at the classy Tremont Grand hotel, and after the opening remarks in a second floor ballroom, I noticed this table set up in the dimly-lit corner, beneath the grand staircase leading to the third floor.

Why did it stick out? Because it’s a booth run by Wells Fargo, the company that the city of Baltimore sued last year for “reverse-redlining,” or predatory lending practices directed toward Baltimore’s black community. Many of these loans, the city alleges, resulted in foreclosures and the further deterioration of some of Baltimore’s poorest neighborhoods.

So why is bank accused of accelerating the foreclosure crisis sponsoring an event to help mitigate the foreclosure crisis? Good PR, I imagine. But it also says something about the nonprofit and housing advocacy community’s feelings about Wells Fargo — that they’re innocent until proven guilty and that they’re not completely persona non grata.