Lotería, a Mexican board game, was always an opportunity for kids and elders to gather around a table during the holidays or family parties. We'd gather some beans from the kitchen, and when the elders felt generous, some quarters and dollar bills. Similar to it's English cousin, Bingo, players mark spots on the gameboard (with raw beans) when an image from the card deck marked the spot. You'd shoutout ¡lotería! when the gameboard has been filled. Some people fill their gameboards at the same time, so you had to be quick on your feet and be the first one to to say it. It was an easy lighthearted game, or so it seemed. As I got older, I realized I grew up normalizing a racist gameboard (ie. a card for El Negrito). The card deck characters have evolved over time, but not enough to completely eradicate the popularity of the racist card deck.
So whenever there's a new version, it feels right to see that they've done away with those specific images, as is the case with the digital card deck created by guest Mexican artists, Cecilia Ruiz and Luis Pinto, for the December 9, 2019 Google Doodle. It can be lighthearted fun where both young and old can come together to play.
This coming Saturday, we will test your game skills, and your Spanish via Zoom. Join us this Saturday, December 5th from 7-8 pm to play a game of Lotería. Register Here! May luck be in your favor! Don't worry we'll be playing with the Google Doodle cards, so get ready to place your beans on "el emoji" and hopefully you'll score a ¡lotería! of your very own!
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