Why Participate as a Freedom Player?
You need to become a Freedom Player if you want to help the 40 million Americans suffering harm because of the greed of big gambling operators.
People like you are the reason why Freedom Players always win.
What is a Freedom Player?
Our action is simple but powerful. We enter a local casino (or local gambling venue), sit down at an electronic gambling machine, put in our money and then we begin Freedom Playing.
Freedom Playing means you play the machine any way you want except you don’t press the Play button. While we Freedom Play, some of us talk with a friend, some read a book and some even knit. The ideas are almost limitless.
While you are Freedom Playing, you are encouraged to ask casino staff some essential questions such as: how do electronic gambling machines work? Why does the casino give away “free slots play” to citizens? Will I ultimately lose all of my money if I play these machines for a length of time? The DSM V labeled gambling an addiction like heroin, cocaine, and opioids so should this slot machine be considered a dangerous and addictive product, and if so, does this casino have a legal duty of care to ensure that I’m not harmed by this product? And so on. You get the idea.
Once you are done Freedom Playing, you will hit the cash out button on the machine and receive a paper voucher that you will present to the Cashier’s Window to receive your “winnings.”
Here are the few steps it takes to be a Freedom Player along with some sample questions you can ask.
What The Freedom Players Aim to Achieve
We use our freedom to play these machines in such a way that:
- Spotlights the 40 million Americans suffering harm because of the greed of big gambling operators;
- Demonstrates commercialized gambling extracts enormous personal wealth from ordinary Americans, leaving many in life-changing levels of personal debt, and how this financial devastation affects their future.
- Highlights the urgency for commercialized gambling to be dramatically reformed in America, especially because we believe the life of every person has intrinsic value and no one is expendable.
All Freedom Players Need to Bring the Following:
- A $5.00 bill or larger (not surprisingly, many slot machines require that you insert at least a $5 bill even though you may be playing a penny slot machine)
- Bring a Valid Photo I.D. (All participants need to be 21 years old or older to enter the casino.)
- Something to do while “Freedom Playing” (i.e. a book, knitting, drawing, etc.)
- Please bring at least one other person with you, a family member, friend or co-worker.
If you need more info, contact us at mail[at]stoppredatorygambling.org
Below is a brief video of the first Freedom Players action from back in January 2008. We were rookies then.