Haatepah Clearbear, the native model who is revolutionizing the world of fashion

At first glance, Haatepah Clearbear could be living the dream of millions of people, because after being discovered on Instagram as a teenager, the San Francisco, California native had the opportunity to move to Los Angeles and model for brands. like Nike and Uniqlo.

But despite his great success and a contract with the prestigious agency Storm Management, which has legends like Kate Moss among its clients, Haatepah’s presence online shows that the 21-year-old seeks to make a mark in history beyond. of his incredible features.

A direct descendant of Kumeyaay and Chichimec people, Haatepah wants to make it clear that his number one priority is to be a supporter and defender of the native communities of the United States and part of Mexico.

Many people have been taught for hundreds of years to hate themselves for being indigenous. I feel that it is important that the people claim who they are, their identity and where we come from.

For this brilliant young man, the problem is systematic and personal. Haatepah was adopted at the age of five with his twin brother by two Caucasian parents and was totally estranged from native communities, but he clearly remembers being bullied as a child for looking different from his classmates.

Unfortunately, the abuse also happened within his own family after one of his parents died, leaving the other a difficult father figure, constantly criticizing him and his brother, making racist comments and making fun of their origins.

My brother and I never said anything until it got to a point where it was unbearable. We told our father that we would never bear his verbal abuse again and we left the house. We had no plans, but we stayed to live with a friend. We were homeless for a while.

For this reason, Haatepah is determined to promote Native rights and history, engaging with the Native American Club, the National Indian Tribes Student Council, as well as the American Indian Movement.

I am Kumeyaay and I also have Chichimeca blood. I feel like that is something very important that I have to represent. Since the Spanish conquerors, there have been many people telling indigenous Mexicans that it is bad to be indigenous.

I hope I can give our people some pride back. Many people have learned to hate themselves when they look in the mirror. I hope that with my work as an activist and model I can make girls and boys happy with their own image and that they feel proud of being indigenous.