5 Latino New Year’s Traditions We’re Doing

woman eating grapes

The New Year is all about new beginnings and starting over, and expecting to make a few changes in your life. Many Latinos like to give those changes an extra oomf with a few New Year’s Eve and Day traditions, even if some feel or look a bit ridiculous. Lest we be jinxed and end up loveless and moneyless, we’re all about putting on calzones amarillos for money or stuffing our mouths with 12 grapes.

Does it work? Who knows, but if it doesn’t help, it certainly won’t hurt. So here we go:


Get Under a Table

Looking for a relationship is as hard as it gets, and a global pandemic didn’t help. Not to mention our mamás who are constantly asking to see their future daughters and sons in law. So of course Latinos have a cure for that and it’s pretty simple – just get under a table as the clock strikes 12 to get lucky with a future partner.

Sad Happy Hour GIF by MOODMANGiphy

Write on 12 Pieces of Paper the 12 Wishes you Want to Accomplish

Wishful thinking has never been quite as literal as this. In some countries, like Colombia, writing down 12 wishes on a piece of paper and then burning those pieces of paper will make every wish or goal happen

brooklyn 99 burning paper

media.giphy.com

Run Around the Block with a Suitcase

Getting to travel is a dream for us all so this is definitely a popular one. We’re going to do whatever it takes to help make our travel dreams happen even if it means pulling up several suitcases exactly at 12 midnight and running around the block in the freezing cold. Running around the house works too but word has it, the further you run, the more exotic the location and we’re not trying to end up at the local Six Flags, so we’re taking those suitcases as far as they need to go.

dog running with suitcase

media.giphy.com

Put Lentejas in your Purse or Wallet

We all want more wealth, don’t we? So it’s safe to say that we’ll be stuffing our purse, pockets and anything at hand with lentejas is the way to go. It’s supposed to help with abundance, so if you want to give our bank account a boost, get to stuffing those lentils in there.

john travolva coming out of a wallet

media.giphy.com

Sweep Your House from the Inside Out

Pick up that broom and make sure you sweep everything outside. Besides having a nice and tidy house in the New Year, which is good every day of the year, this ritual will sweep away any bad vibes that are lingering and get that bad luck out of your space and outside where it belongs. Visualize ending up with a nice clean slate with only good vibes left for a solid 2022.

Robin Williams Cleaning GIF by Hollywood SuiteGiphy

Do you know any more? Which ones are you doing? We’re doing every single one because 2022 needs all the help it can get. Let us know on Twitter @luzcollective.

Graphic design that features an illustration of Doña Marina, La Maliche.

La Malinche is one of the most well-known historical figures and representatives of indigenous women in Mexico. Also known as Maltintzin, Malinalli, or Doña Marina (as the Spanish called her), she was known as Hernán Cortés’s translator during the Spanish conquest. As a result, La Malinche has been perceived as a traitor to her own people, something that has been memorialized in Mexican slang. Being called a “malinchista” is the same as being called disloyal or a traitor to one’s country and culture.

Keep ReadingShow less
woman at Mexico's international women's day protest

As March 8, 2025, approaches, Latin American feminist movements are preparing for another wave of International Women’s Day (IWD) mobilizations. Built on decades of Latin American activism, these annual demonstrations—marked by purple flags, green scarves, and demands for reproductive justice—contrast sharply with the escalating threats to Latinas in the U.S., where abortion bans, workplace inequities, and political marginalization signal a crisis of rights. The strategies honed in Latin America, from grassroots organizing to transnational legal advocacy, provide a critical roadmap for resilience that U.S. Latinas could leverage.

Keep ReadingShow less