The true costs of Canada’s gambling industry are higher than many care to admit.
Debt, addiction, mental health, and suicide are significant issues often tied to problem gambling, and Rob Csernyik tackles all of them in his new book, A Losing Hand: The Human Cost of Canada’s Gambling Epidemic.
The book, from Sutherland House, details the inner workings of Canada’s gambling industry and how governments are incentivized to expand the industry to maximize profit. The negative effects of gambling on mental health are also highlighted, as are strategies and recommendations to better regulate the industry.
Speaking with BayToday about his new book, Csernyik recalled that his interest in writing about gambling in Canada began when he was first reporting on the 25th anniversary of the casinos in his home province of Nova Scotia in 2020. “I remember going through news archives to find stories related to the casinos and related to gambling, and I was finding all of these stories about people who had died by suicide where gambling had been considered a risk factor.”
“And it really stuck with me because I realized how we weren’t having those conversations in the media,” he added. Csernyik wanted to shine a light on the issue and continued researching gambling in Canada, with a focus on the effects the industry has on individuals.
His research also reveals our governments could take more action to prevent the loss of life. Within A Losing Hand, Csernyik emphasized, “In the past thirty years, no death attributed to gambling-related suicide, no matter how preventable the act or distressing the details, has moved a single provincial government to take meaningful, sustained action to prevent others.”
He added that recently, since last November, Newfoundland and Labrador are now tracking gambling-related suicides.
Conducting his research and hearing the tragic stories of loss from families certainly affected the author. “It really felt like a topic that was just so preventable and tied to these important questions about this kind of economic industry, about the political choices related to it, even about the kind of community-level choices that we make as citizens. Do we stigmatize people with gambling addictions?”
The question is pertinent, as how one answers reveals whether they believe the addicted gambler is the result of a flawed, exploitative economic system or an individual lacking willpower or the morality to remove themselves from the temptations of the industry.
“Do we see that as the fault of the individual, or a fault of the system? I felt that there was something very valuable that I could contribute to that discussion,” Csernyik said.
A 2022 Michener-Deacon Journalism Fellowship allowed Csernyik the opportunity to write the book. As a freelance journalist, Csernyik is a regular contributor to the Globe and Mail, and his work has appeared in Barron’s Penta, the Narwhal, Report on Business and other publications.
While researching the book, Csernyik had anticipated he would find more data available on the subject. “I found there were quite a few gaps in the data that existed, and that’s part of the reason why I think the book is important. I think I make the case throughout that part of the conversation that we have about gambling lacks this focus on the human cost, but it’s not because they’re not happening.”
“It’s because the data in some cases isn’t collected, or it’s not transparent,” he added.
He mentioned that once legalized, there will be a segment of the population who become addicted to gambling. “But the question is, is that segment on par with other jurisdictions? Does it fall in line with what might be considered average, or is it something greater than that?”
If those statistics are better collected and understood, more effective harm-reduction measures could be implemented, the author emphasized.
Csernyik’s book, part of the publisher’s Sutherland Quarterly Series, is a quick read at 100 pages. The series contains long-form essays on current affairs. The short format suited Csernyik well, a perfect vehicle to get his research across to audiences in a timely fashion.
“People can pick this up and get a solid overview of the recent couple of decades of history of Canada’s gambling expansion, the policy questions being asked and the health questions being asked.”
“These are real stories about people who’ve been impacted,” Csernyik said.
One of his hopes for the book is that these real stories resonate with people, especially decision-makers who can effect change in public policy. “The goal would be that some of these issues are incorporated into their discussions.”
The industry has some very human costs, the author emphasized.
The book traces Canada’s gambling industry from the beginning to today, and the business continues to expand. With countless ads for gambling during sportscasts, casinos popping up in more towns and cities, and online gambling allowing people to place bets from their couches, the industry shows no signs of receding.
However, Csernyik’s book calls for a cautionary approach to this forward momentum. A Losing Hand urges everyone to fully consider the human costs of this economic engine, the costs which too often become obfuscated by those reaping financial profits.
“I think we forget that people who develop gambling addiction and who face gambling-related harms are not some otherworldly group of people. They’re our neighbours, our friends and our family,” Csernyik said.
“By recalibrating the way we look at these stories, that also recalibrates the way we look at the industry, and I think we need to start asking smarter, more urgent questions about the size and the scope of some of the activities related to it.”
Csernyik’s A Losing Hand: The Human Cost of Canada’s Gambling Epidemic does just that. Published by Sutherland House the book hits the shelves on August 18 and is available from most booksellers across Canada.