Is there a link between racism, discrimination, and gambling harms
According to a new report from GambleAware, there is such a connection- this report focuses on lifetime experiences of gambling and gambling harm among minority groups in the UK.
According to the report, adults who belong to minority groups and have a gambling problem are 50 per cent more likely to experience discrimination and racism compared to people who do not have a gambling addiction. Minority people are three times more likely than white British people to use gambling as a coping mechanism. At the same time, they find it more challenging to access support, particularly because they lack information about services.
The new GambleAware funding programme will address the additional gambling-related problems faced by people from religious and ethnic minorities. It is planned to allocate £4.3 million for this purpose. Such a large sum is due to the rapid growth in the number of online casinos and the popularity of slot machines. If statistics are to be believed, the most frequent searches for video slots are Sweet Bonanza, Penalty Shoot Out and Gates of Olympus. We decided to familiarise ourselves with one of them and came across gates-of-olympus-slots.org, where you can play this video slot for free and familiarise yourself with its mechanics.
A study by Ipsos UK and ClearView Research, supported by the University of Manchester, confirmed that stigma and discrimination can play a role not only in causing harm but also in preventing people from getting help and support. Some interviewees indicated that racism and discrimination had led to their play behaviours becoming more pronounced. As a result, they have experienced problems with social isolation, reduced employment opportunities and an increased risk of mental health problems.
The report also found that people from minority communities who gambled were three times more likely to say that gambling was a ‘coping mechanism’ for them to deal with life problems, compared to white British people who gambled (18 per cent versus 6 per cent).
Importantly, not only was there a relative lack of awareness in minority communities about gambling support but there was also an apparent distrust of support services due to previous experiences of racism and discrimination that people had encountered when seeking help.
Fortunately, the National Gambling Support Network offers confidential, personalised support for people from all walks of life. That said, the research suggests that gambling support services need to work on building trust among minorities.
The GambleAware Foundation is committed to reducing inequalities in the experience of gambling harms for women and people from religious and ethnic minorities – this is the purpose of the additional funding that will be available to specialist organisations in England, Scotland and Wales.
