Black chamber of commerce plans gaming conference in Las Vegas

Monday, Jan. 31, 2000 | 11:48 a.m.

The Urban Chamber of Conference, which represents black business interests in Las Vegas, announced plans to hold an international conference on gaming in May at the MGM Grand hotel-casino.

The conference, scheduled for May 3-5, will examine the societal impact of the expansion of gaming into urban areas across the country, such as Detroit and Chicago. About 500 are expected to attend from across the country and the world.

"There's quite a bit of discussion about gaming venues moving into urban areas," said Louis Overstreet, executive director of the chamber. "We're going to outline the benefits and the problems, the good, bad and the ugly of it."

Issues examined will include black participation and ownership in the gaming industry, problem gambling, security issues and the economic and societal impact of the industry. The group also plans to speak out on behalf of the industry on such issues as a proposed ban on betting on college events and an increase in the state's gaming tax.

"We're very supportive of the industry, and we hope to share some of our insight," Overstreet said.

Overstreet said the organization would like to see more minority ownership in gaming operations, but said there won't be any open calls for more minority ownership in Las Vegas, as has occurred in cities such as Detroit.

"That's probably not going to happen politically (in Las Vegas), because the voting numbers are not there ... we hope there's some kind of social conscience to bring it about, make it happen," Overstreet said. "We're going to be a little more tactful and strategic. We would hope to see more (minorities) in management positions first."

The group will also award its Excellence in Achievement Awards to the conference to leaders in the fields of business, civil rights, entertainment, media, politics and sports.