A Dallas-Based Mahjong Line Is Facing National Backlash for Cultural Appropriation
The company, founded by three White women, decided to give a centuries-old Chinese game a respectful refresh that no one asked for.
By Emily Heft
Published in
Living
January 8, 2021
11:07 am
The Mahjong Line, a Dallas-based company founded by three White women, has come under fire for redesigning and rebranding a traditional Chinese game and failing to properly acknowledge its cultural significance.
Mahjong was developed during China’s Qing Dynasty and spread across Asia in the 19th century. The game is ubiquitous in Chinese culture; it’s played at family gatherings, among friends, in public parks, and beyond. It’s also popular in the United States, where it’s been widely available since the 1920s. Though the game has spread across the world, most Mahjong sets look very similar to the original design, bearing Chinese characters and symbols like birds and flowers.