Alvin Gwynn Sr. was a teenager in the 1960s when slot machines were in drugstores, grocery stores and bars and nightclubs throughout Baltimore.
The pastor of Friendship Baptist Church in Baltimore remembered the problems slots created in the community, most notably organized crime.
He doesn’t want those problems to return.
“We used to call [slot machines] one-armed bandits,” Gwynn said. “They’re still bandits today.”
Gwynn joined more than 30 other Baltimore-area ministers and pastors Monday to speak out against the slots referendum on the November statewide ballot. The referendum would allow as many as 15,000 slot machines at five locations in Maryland, including Baltimore City, if passed.
Slots legislation “will ultimately destroy Maryland families, neighborhoods and communities,” the faith leaders said.
“We saw people lose their homes, go through dire straits and poor financial situations,” Gwynn said. “There was an increase in pawn shops, alcoholism, and we saw a syndicated crime movement move into the state.”
The ministers and pastors on Monday met with Marylanders United to Stop Slots and Comptroller Peter Franchot.
Franchot reiterated his message on slots, saying installing the machines in Maryland would undermine the state’s economy and lead to increased crime, corruption and addiction.
“We have to empower people, build businesses, invest in education and do the old-fashioned work,” Franchot said. “That will raise revenue as the economy grows. Slots are not responsible from a moral or fiscal standpoint.”
Referendum language submitted Monday to the Board of Elections said the lottery licenses would be issued for raising revenue to fund education efforts. The legislation establishes an Education Trust Fund and dedicates half of future proceeds to public schools.
The Maryland State Teachers Association supports slots. MSTA spokesman Daniel Kaufman on Monday acknowledged the creation of slots parlors could have “secondary effects.”
“There have been a lot of claims thrown out there, and we know there are always some secondary effects, but we haven’t seen any research or statistics that proves that argument,” Kaufman said.
“They haven’t come up with any viable alternatives,” Kaufman said. “For us, it’s not the ideal solution, but we don’t see any other alternatives to generate additional funding at this point.”
The Maryland Chamber of Commerce has also endorsed the referendum, saying there’s no alternative to the revenue slots would generate for Maryland. The revenue generated would help prevent future tax increases, the chamber said.
Supporters have estimated slots would generate an estimated $600 million in revenue annually.
Maryland is almost surrounded by states with slots or video lottery terminals. Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia have gambling machines.
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