Al Sharpton Finds Out Black Americans Lose Money Gambling, Complains About Existence Of Online Sportsbooks
Al Sharpton, the civil rights activist turned social justice warrior, appears to have discovered the existence of online sports gambling. In an incredibly predictable fashion, he finds the business to be racist.
The ‘reverend’ has specifically taken issue with FanDuel and DraftKings with the two online gambling giants dominating the market in the United States. Sharpton has taken such an issue with the two companies that he has written a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) calling it a "gambling duopoly" that is disproportionally impacting black Americans.
"As a civil rights advocate, I write to you because their dominance and influence have raised serious concerns about competition, fairness, and consumer protection in the market. This is especially troubling when we consider the demographic profile of their user base, with a significant portion being Black Americans," the letter, obtained by USA Today, reads in part.
"When a duopoly takes hold, consumers are the biggest losers, and the most vulnerable consumers − including Black Americans − bear the brunt of that harm. Indeed, Black Americans on the whole are more likely to engage in sports betting; among young adults, they sports bet at a higher rate than any other demographic (68%). They also bet more money than any other ethnic group."
In other words, Sharpton is upset that FanDuel and DraftKings exist because black Americans gamble more than any other demographic in the country. He isn't taking issue with the behavior of black Americans loading up their gambling accounts and making wagers, he's upset at the system for allowing them the ability to do so.
Al Sharpton believes online sports gambling is racist towards black Americans. (Julie Vennitti Botos / Canton Repository / USA TODAY NETWORK)
The person making a questionable decision is never at fault, the blame must always be pinned on the system at large, because it's much easier to play the systemic racism card than the ‘maybe let’s stop making dumb decisions' card.
READ: Sage Steele Shuts Down Al Sharpton, Wishes He Would Go Away
The race angle of Sharpton's ridiculous opinion is only one side of the coin here and appears to be an excuse for him to complain about how he's unable to reap any benefits from the online sports gambling world.
"I urge the FTC to investigate the anti-competitive behavior of the Sports Betting Alliance and its member companies to ensure that consumers-especially Black Americans-can reap the benefits of a truly competitive market that rewards innovation, value, and consumer protection," he continues in his letter.
Sharpton whining about anti-competitiveness and "consumer protection" is incredibly rich given his not-so-distant history in the gambling arena.
In November 2021, Sharpton visited Richmond, Virginia to campaign for an Urban One casino to be built in the city. Not only is it incredibly hypocritical for a ‘reverend’ to promote the building of a casino that residents, including black Americans, would visit and lose money at, but Sharpton was solely looking out for himself while promoting the casino.
At the time, Sharpton hosted a radio show called ‘Keeping It Real’ that happened to be syndicated by Reach Media, which is a subsidiary of Urban One. He claimed his endorsement of the casino had nothing to do with his direct financial ties to Urban One.