Formed in November 2023
Based in West Los Angeles
DTRxHLR (Down To the Root/Hasta La Raíz) is a Mexican, more specifically a Oaxacan owned brand who’s goals are to represent all indigenous people of the Americas from the north to the south. Our main focus is to shed light on and uncover our roots that make us who we are and not who they want us to be. To be comfortable in today’s society without assimilating. We shouldn’t be ashamed of our culture or traditions that have been practiced for many generations, shouldn’t be ashamed of our indigenous languages, or our garments or the food we eat or more importantly the complexion of our skin.
We are used to seeing Americas version of history and not the truth. The white man painted as the hero and us the savages. Without an accurate telling of our history, we cannot fully address problems that are rooted in the past affecting our present, we are viewed as foreigners, our issues become someone else’s problems not America’s problems. We’ve always been here and don’t plan to go anywhere else, “We didn’t cross the border, the boarder crossed us”. When our rich past is kept from us, it leaves people to believe that we belong somewhere else outside this country.
Still to this day, many indigenous communities are treated horribly all across the world, making them 15% of the worlds poorest while occupying only a mere 22% of the land on earth. Let us not forget about the silent genocides of the past while we take action against the ones in our present to prevent any in future generations.
We don’t expect apologies because frankly we’re way past that point, we take action. I myself am still learning a lot about my ancestry, and I encourage others to do the same. Instead of tearing each other apart we should educate and unify all our black and brown brothers and sisters. We aren’t so different from each other. Either you get on board or get out of the way, we’re taking back what’s ours regardless of legal status. Native to the land, dispersed by greed. Soy de sangre indígena hasta la raíz
-Geo Marcial