Bingo and Oklahoma: Two Peas in a Pod
Oklahoma has long been synonymous with Bingo. That’s because the Native tribes of Oklahoma have operated Bingo games for generations. Patrons from many of the surrounding states pile in trucks and head over to Oklahoma to gamble on Bingo on the weekends.
The 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was introduced after a precedent setting ruling by The U.S. Supreme Court the year before. Since that time, 23 of the 39 American Indian bands of Oklahoma have opened gambling halls. The Chickasaw were the first Oklahoma Indian tribes to take advantage of the betting restrictions, and at this time control ten gambling dens of their own. Bingo is the game on which these casinos were built on. computerized games like slot machine games weren’t allowed, because they’re thought to contribute to gambling addiction at a higher rate than bingo.
In the past few years, Oklahoma governing edicts have altered to allow for large Native gaming gambling halls. You will now see Native gambling halls with one armed bandits, video poker and chemin de fer tables. Craps and roulette are not yet allowed in the Amerindian casinos yet, but this is simply a waiting game. No one can say what having different games in the bingo parlours will do for the draw of bingo.
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