Editing Gambling (section)

=== United States===
{{Main|Gambling in the United States}}

Gambling has been a popular activity in the United States for centuries.<ref>Roger Munting,  ''An economic and social history of gambling in Britain and the USA.'' (Manchester U. Press, 1996).</ref> It has also been suppressed by law in many areas for almost as long. By the early 20th century, gambling was almost uniformly outlawed throughout the U.S. and thus became a largely illegal activity, helping to spur the growth of the [[American mafia|mafia]] and other [[criminal organizations]].<ref>{{cite book | title=Gambling in California | date=March 1997 | chapter=History of Gambling in the United States | publisher=California State Library | url=http://www.library.ca.gov/CRB/97/03/crb97003.html | chapter-url=http://www.library.ca.gov/crb/97/03/Chapt2.html | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091008073125/http://www.library.ca.gov/CRB/97/03/crb97003.html | archive-date=2009-10-08 }}</ref><ref>E.g., [[Constitution of Louisiana]], 1974, Art. VII, Sec. 6(B).</ref> The late 20th century saw a softening in attitudes towards gambling and a relaxation of laws against it.