Aug 14, 2023 | ABOUT MNAPG
Sean Copeland New Board Member MNAPG
Sean Copeland, an attorney for the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, is MNPGA’s newest board member. He brings the important perspective of tribal interests to MNPGA.
Sean first learned about MNAPG from attending Minnesota Indian Gambling Association (MIGA) meetings. Although he doesn’t have an in-depth knowledge of problem gambling, it’s an area that he hopes to better understand.
“One of the reasons I joined the board was so that I could learn more about problem gambling and hopefully bring some of that knowledge back to the Band and perhaps help implement some problem gambling solutions,” says Sean.
Sean has worked as an attorney for the Band since 2010 and has served as the Band’s tribal attorney since 2013. He performs legal work related to tribal governance, natural resources, education, healthcare and gaming.
Sean, who enjoys mountain biking around Duluth, grew up in Seattle but has lived all over the country. He came to Minnesota for a volunteer program and law school. “I previously worked in the criminal justice system as a prosecutor and public defender, which is one of the reasons I’m interested in problem gambling,” says Sean. “I’ve dealt with a lot of people with chemical dependency issues so I have some familiarity with addiction. I’m excited to be here and work on these important issues.”
Aug 14, 2023 | RESOURCES
MNAPG strives to provide as many resources as possible so that all Minnesotans are aware of the risks and harms of problem gambling. Over the past year, we’ve been working with people in specific communities to ensure that our most basic messaging is available in the many languages represented in Minnesota. You can request a list of the problem gambling warning signs in Spanish, Chinese, Hmong, Vietnamese and Somali, as well as English, by visiting https://form.jotform.com/221867275834062. We have also added a translate button on our website, which will provide access to 12 different languages: Chinese (simplified), Chinese(traditional), Haitian, Hindi, Hmong, Japanese, Korean, Lao, Somali, Spanish, Thai and Vietnamese. (Please note that we’re aware that the translations may not fully capture a specific community’s turn of phrase, or the English terms might not be readily translatable; we’re relying on an automated system.)
Aug 14, 2023 | ABOUT MNAPG, ADVOCACY
Over the last six months, we contracted with Preston Spire’s public relations team, One Simple Plan, to increase the visibility of numerous issues pertaining to problem gambling. Since starting this effort, MNAPG has had two op-ed pieces published, one which is circulating among various statewide outlets. This is important, as we want to reach as many Minnesotans as possible. The first piece was published in the Star Tribune and the second in the Duluth News Tribune. MNAPG also received air time on local stations, with interviews on KTTC (Rochester), KARE11 (Twin Cities) and Fox News 9 (Twin Cities). Our media communications can be found at mnapg.org/news.
Aug 14, 2023 | ADVOCACY
Working in conjunction with Preston Spire, MNAPG has created public service announcements (PSAs) that can be streamed wherever appropriate. We created a 30-second PSA and a 15-second PSA. Both can be viewed on MNAPG’s YouTube channel.
The goal of the PSAs is to communicate that gambling addiction is as real as any other addiction. The PSAs depict a young man “drinking,” “smoking” and “snorting” a deck of cards and closes with a reminder that there’s help for gambling addiction, that it works and that it’s free.
We plan to post this video frequently on our social media channels. In addition, the Star Tribune will use targeted emails and banner ads to help get these videos in front of the eyes of thousands of Minnesotans. We’d appreciate it if you would share the link mnapg.org/psa to your own networks.
Watch the PSA HERE.
Aug 14, 2023 | ABOUT MNAPG
MNAPG is undergoing a refresh of its strategic plan, initially approved in 2019. We’ll be reaching out to our stakeholders for additional input as we get closer to finalizing our goals and strategies. The updated plan will capture and reflect some of the changes that have taken place in the industry since the original plan was created.
