Let’s embrace our Native American/indigenous heritage.

I’m mestiza my dad is an Italian who’s family immigrated to Mexico in the 60s/50s and my mom is hñähñu chichimeca/ Otomi I’ve always been more close to my indigenous roots because I grew up with my moms family I’m very proud to say I’m Native American, but it’s really sad seeing how growing up in Latin America most mestizos or full indigenous people don’t claim their indigenous heritage they view indigenous people as as a minority I remember my mom making me wear our traditional clothing to school and braids and the kids would call me “India” but I learned to stand up for myself and say “si si soy y que 🪶💯” regarding my skin color which is quite pale in comparison to my mothers my name, my culture, my traditions, That I am the closest too is indigenous American 🪶🪶

I love that she is very proud of her heritage. I applaud you queen.

My grandparents are Pipils from Nahuizalco, preach sister and much love to all my indigenous brothers and sisters from a Salvadorian 👋🇸🇻

I've met an elder couple that are, indigenous people from, near the boarder to Belize. They didn't speak Spanish. They spoke their natural indigenous language and, a very little english. They couldn't read english very well. The man asked me to, read a label out loud to him. He understood english from hearing it, more then he could, reading it. So I read the food item label, to them. And, it was the product they were looking for. He thanked me, in his first language, then again, in english. He too said, they are not Mexican I can not remember, what clan he said, they came from.

Odilia - thank you for your clarity and truth. So much gratitude to you for your story and voice. ❤🎉

I work for a handicraft company that sells products from all over the world. Right now a lot of branches are showing off whatever was made in Latin America on social media with captions claiming "Happy Hispanic Heritage Month!" ...Problem is, half of the Latin American products they're associating with "Hispanic" are actually made by indigenous peoples - Highland Maya women from Guatemala, Quechua and Aymara-speaking people from Peru, and Kichwa-speaking people from Ecuador. It's really annoying.

Da'an'zho 100 100% native american apache of mexico is me and we are not asian we are not white were indigenous native americans of the americas and that will NEVER CHANGE 💯🕵🏾‍♀️👏🏾💥🤜🏾🤛🏾😉 and Mexicans their all native american we all need to forgive our enemies they can't label when they dont even know their own roots

Respect. I remember when I was asked to interpret for one of my partners (I worked in Law Enforcement). The guy that was being arrested looked at me at but confused. I asked him, if he was Mexican, he said, “Yes.” Then I asked if my Spanish was confusing (I speak proper/formal Spanish-I’m Salvadoran). The suspect told me Spanish wasn’t his first language and he struggles sometimes to understand. He said he was from Oaxaca. Anyway, since my 30th birthday, I’ve been identifying as American Indian. This lady reminds me of my grandma. Embrace your roots! 🎉

It is sad that Native Americans are the ones having the hardest time moving from one country to another within the Americas. The borders made by others stop us, and allow everybody else through.

So relatable. My grandma speaks Nawakayáno, and I grew up speaking it and still using it to this day. Although I have spanish speaking family who don't know anything about our culture and language, I still feel somewhat discriminated. My grandma said we are Yanoshinenatsóte. Although I speak Spanish and English. I wouldn't want to refer to myself as Latino or Hispanic.

Much Love My Sister 🪶 -Lenca Tribe 🇭🇳

I’m nicaraguan-american and my great grandma was a pure nawat nicarao (nahua) native. She had red skin, like a native american, and its documented in the chronicles of conquistadors francisco cordoba and gil gonzalez davila describing the nawat nicarao people as “rojos” and their children "rojitos" (reds/little reds in spanish). I have 40% native american on my dna test (60% european), proud of my nahua heritage 💪🇳🇮

Yes i can relate, when i was brought to las vegas as a kid i could not eat fast food i would starve myself until i got home and eat fry eggs and beans

I want to visit Oaxaca and also the afro Mexican community there

Greetings from India. I'm doing some research on the percentage of Native Americans in the USA and I was also quite intrigued by the fact that Native American people coming into the US from Latin America are not considered native in the US. The European rulers of the USA have put you all into a spiral of ethnicities, languages, nationalities and what not so that you all don't get a peek at the big picture. :D When I heard you speak on this video, I understood why it is that difficult for ordinary Native Americans from Mexico, Central and South America to get that big picture. Just in case you're wondering what on earth is that "big picture" I'm referring to, then here's what I meant - going by the US classification of a Native American, even people who consider themselves Mestizos can be Native American. You'd know it better than me that there are scores of federally accepted Native Americans with varying percentages of European blood flowing in their veins. Therefore, all of you Mestizos and pure Native Americans based in the USA and originating in Mexico, Central America and South America could easily comprise at least two-thirds of the "Latino" population in the US. That would be in the range of 20% of the US population and that's a massive vote base. Yes, the beautiful things you spoke about your native culture is extremely important for your identity and individuality but you need to get your priorities right as a community - the Native American community. Look at the African-American or for that matter, the composite white or Caucasian community. I feel your top priority is the recognition of the native American community in the US originating in Mexico, Central America and South America as Native Americans. If the laws on date appear to be a stiff barrier on the way to fulfill this priority then you need your own folks to set aside every other priority behind this one and get the message across loud and clear to those who come asking for your votes in both the federal and state level elections as well as your local county level elections. I come from a country where our native traditions have helped us survive nearly fourteen centuries of unrelenting invasions first by Islamic sultanates and then by the same European colonial imperialists and we know a thing or two about how they operate. :D They follow a simple principle - divide and rule! They played on our diversity and now they are playing on yours. So, get every Native American on board and get that recognition first. Everything else will follow thereafter.

Yes, yes, and YES! We hear you. We champion you. And we thank you for sharing your truth with us.

This is amazing! Too bad information like this is not being taught in most schools. History is history and cannot be changed. I find extremely sad that many indigenous languages are disappearing little by little. Thank you very much Odilia Romero!

Thank u....very interesting. No matter how far apart we are, we breath the same air.....

She is Zapotec, that is the longest lived people of Mexico. They were around and traded with the mother people the Olmacs, and were a strong people when the Spanish arrived. I think Tres Zapotes? was the highest city in elevation of all Meso America...

I am just an indigenous as well and didn't learn so much about my origin language. All I can acknowledge I come from otomi . I am being discriminated all the time .

Very smart lady 😘her English is perfect.She’s very proud of her heritage, my respects 🙏 I am very indigenous looking but just don’t think about it,I just go with the flow.

I am Mexican but also Native American from Mexico but I don`t know my native side or culture but I can relate with Odilia 100% and I stand with her in what she has said Blessing my Amiga.

I am mixed race with indigenous and Spanish. I embrace both.

Latin is an Indo-European language that originated in the Latium region of central Italy. It was the language of ancient Rome and was used throughout the Roman Empire for communication, administration, and literature.

YES!!!! 🫵🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽♥️♥️♥️🪶🪶 Thank you!!

Padiuxi! I studied there back in the early nineties, what a great experience. I am planning to visit Zoogocho in the next few years.

I know her, never met her, but I know her. I, also lived with my Grandparents and Great Grama, I was born in Arizona, but I knew I was Native. My Dad's side is Yaqui, they never called us children, they called us bookis, Yaqui for young ones. Were very true to the Day of the Dead. I was just Mexican for a long time. Started school, went to Hispanic,Latina, Mexican American,Chicana, I like Chicana bc of the movement. Chicanos r kinda like the new tribe of the South West. My Mom's family is Huachelo from Jalisco. This is where I get a lot of Mexican history, my Tata (grandpa), was full Huachelo. They used to talk to me a lot about the Natives. The first time I went to Mexico with my grandparents, my Tata said, holding earth in his hand, "this is the earth of our seed, there is no other beginning and no end". He took us to the river where his tribe still washed outside. I didn't realize their lessons, till I got older. I'm no spring chicken. I identified as Native for the first time on the last census. It felt right.

Preach 🙌🏽✨️ I have been saying this for years! Finally someone understands 🎉

Odilia Romero, hablas del corazón. Viva Los Indígenas:)

I was separated from my family and raised white, I am working to reclaim my indigenous identity. I am so proud of my culture and my people and I just can’t simply leave that behind. It’s in my blood. It’s in my DNA. We should all be so proud. I don’t have a single drop of Spanish blood and that means resistance. We did not bow. I love this woman.

Low key I need this loop longer

We should just honestly just be called South Americans like how people from Africa are called Africans, People from Asia are called Asians etc. (granted there are different parts for example there’s East Asia, South Africa etc) Never understood why they refer to people living there as “Latino” just because we speak latin Romance languages as if it’s exclusive to this continent when there’s clearly other countries in the world that speak Spanish and French. So that label of “Latino America” on a continent that’s should’ve just been strictly called South America and its people “South American” makes no sense to me tbh

Indigenous Resistance for our existence ✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽🦅🦅🦅🦅

This video is specifically for people within what is now Latin America who are connected Indigenous people, not Latinos in general btw. She’s solely speaking for the Indigenous community.

It’s mostly because I don’t speak Spanish, but we don’t hear enough from indigenous south americans. Both North and South American countries today are a result of European colonisation, but they seem to show very different attitudes towards the fact.

Colonization brought us together by language but we're native to the American continent like no other race ...

Great job!

I love this woman.

Hi from Russia! Those woman in red jacket and with curly hair who called the speaker "uneducated indian" should have had the answer " judging by your norms of morality youre lack of education too"!!! Well to my opinion native americans looks very different from spanish, I would recognise them if i visit America one day.

You have my support. Skydancer Whitewolf.

Ohhh, I love her! ❤ I don't speak Spanish. I'm Indigenous and White. That's it.

I also refuse to identify as Hispanic/ Latino!

The real Latinos are Italians.

14:52 😂 that got me dying LMAO, interesting fact: Frida Kahlo profits off of indigenous people regalia

I saw a Native American say " these people are not immigrants ( Mexicans) these are Native people coming home " 🇺🇸👍

European colonists in the USA (and other North and South American countries) have stolen the identity of Americans for themselves, along with the land, and have sought to undermine or deny the claims and rights of indigenous peoples to exist within the same space. Americans refer to all indigenous peoples from former Spanish and Portuguese conquests as Latinos/-as because the majority are indigenous Americans, but to recognize that would be to recognize that they have a greater right to live in the USA (or Canada) than European colonists. The ancestors of Indigenous people in Central American isthmus, South America and the Caribbean all migrated South from what is now the USA and Canada after crossing the Bering Straits from Eurasia.

BUT, a lot of so called Latin persons, solely because Spanish is their primary language, are in fact Indigenous.

Es algo difícil, el origen de mis abuelos es obvio pero desconocido y su idioma no es el de su color pero yo heredé esos genes indígenas y no se donde caigo en todo esto, no tengo tribu más que mis vecinos

I'm sorry girl, and I support your people no matter what.

❤️👏🏻

I was one of those native southern children who was used in the 80s to test mental health drugs. They had me on as many as 6 at a time for years. They took advantage of my mother's ignorance and wrecked my childhood.

I hear you my sister

You know I can appreciate and understand your feelings and thoughts. But what we all have to be careful to understand is that our differences and separation does not also cause reverse discrimination to what you term as the white man or even the European. That is very complicated. If you were to study history in depth, anyone, you would understand this. The very Spanish that came and colonized were themselves technically mestizo and more. For Spaniards their ancestry is mixed with the Native Iberians and then add about another 10-12 colonizations and mixing. So the old saying is that history repeats iteself. Spaniards were the only Europeans that even mixed with the indians, the other Europeans kept to themselves. That is why the Northern European, Central European went into Spain to clean out what they deemed as inpure blood lines. They wanted to make Iberia into what they wanted. They did not succeed. All cultures that are deep in tradition and have not mixed retain their pride, whether you are Native to the land of Mexico or an Iberan or Guanche that is native to Spain. Pride is Pride. We need to make sure though our pride does not become a form of Ethnocentrism or we do not fully know what other cultures went thru and we only repeat false tales or leyendas negras..that is not good either.

I liked your arousing speech Odelia. Shtio su” l from san Dionisio ocotepec, Oax.,México.

Thank u sister . I'm not the only one

I've seen this in my predominantly "Latino" neighborhood many times. I'm able to recognize an indigenous person from south of the border almost right away, but they're often lumped in with the mainstream. Happy she's bringing this to light.

My question is : What about meztizo term in Mexico and other latin-speaking american countries? Is that word accurate for native population if they lack latino/european ancestry? Why Filipinos have not been called Latinos too but Asians instead? 🤔🤔

I’m Mexican and on the race questions on any forms I alway put Indigenous American. I am mestizo but since I can’t choose two things sometimes, I would like to be represented in the Indigenous American race. I am white but do not look totally European. I look like both European and Indigenous American so it’s very complicated for me on those questioner’s about race.

What most people consider Latino are Mestizos And Pardos usually they have mixed looks and sounds to the majority of them without make up or eyeliner yeah.

I’ve always hated that word Latino and Hispanic

Everyone is Indigenous somewhere!

Wait wait, but when Mexico own Cali and New Mexico there were tribes there and when Americans came they claim that land and they called those ppl native Americans but if you were connected to Mexico what would that make those tribes…

❤❤❤❤❤❤

It’s the American educational system we learned from when we were little the concept of classification we classify was good, and we classify was bad we classified by numbers if it was up to some people, we are classified by hair, color, and eye color the concept that were simply human people doesn’t release in the matter, and the fact that were taught this was normal. It’s just plain wrong. We all have origins of the same place on the sea. Some stayed on the equator somewhere north, someone south, and as we lived in those atmospheres we slowly evolved and we lead religion divide our peoples. We all forgot where we came from. We all forgot that we are simply one people and those people of certain generations truly believe that we are of different peoples specially those in North America particularly the United States they wondered across his land they decided they wanted it so they made some BS about manifest destiny and took the land is a thing out of the question I came across are Latinos from the North American continent, indigenous to the North American continent which is a die question you can’t answer your own question with an answer their native Americans, Mexico was not created until the early 1800s before that it was land where Indian tribes lived closer to the equator the white ancestors at the time played everybody favorite game. Divide and conquer our Mexicans native Americans don’t make me repeat myself.

You have the right to keep your culture , but class struggle unites all workers against the bourgeois class.

Not uncomfortable..you are so interesting..I want to learn more... sorry for the things you have been going through...

I agree, prejudice is unethical & immoral.

As a Latino I do not want to be labeled Indigenous! The feeling is mutual.

Respect

My DNA test Indigenous America Central-Honduras and Belize-47% Indigenous Americas- Bolivia & Peru-4% Indigenous Americas- Panama & Costa Rica- 3%😊 Indigenous Americas- Yucatan peninsula-1% Spain- 24% Cameroon congo& Western bantu- 6% Senegal-3% Mali-3% Baltics-2% Nigeria, east Central 1% Levant 1% Cyprus-1% That is my DNA test. Since as long as I can remember i never knew how to identify so i just always checked the other box, the law marks me down as a white male. My skin is dark brown. My family doesn't speak about their history, they are ashamed of it and I'm just trying to learn anything I can. My family is from Honduras but they don't ever mention anything about that nor speak about it

AS A LATINO I WOULD LOVE TO BE CALLED NATIVE AMERICAN IT FITS US WAY MORE I SIMPLY ADORE IT AS IT IS WHAT WE ARE AND UNLIKE LATINX IT ISNT AKWARD TO SAY

However most Americans view anyone "native american" as somebody from the N. American tribes and not Mexico or other central American countries

I believe that my heritage is Mestiza My mother shows a very native look on her face. And proud of it. I'm proud of my heritage but unsure of what I have more of. So I say I'm American. And proud of it.

Native blood from Sinaloa here…

She is wrong of several things. Latin Americans ARE INDIGENOUS peoples of the AMERICAS and NO you do not need to speak Indigenous language to be considered Indigenous. Not many Latinos speak their Native ancestors language! Our DNA proved our indigenous bloodlines. Dont preach inclusivity while excluding your brothers and sisters.

Most Mexicans are mestizo so most Mexicans are part indigenous.

🙌🏼

Wrong, the word “Mexican “ comes from the word “Mexica “, which is what the Aztecs called themselves. Mexicans are indigenous and Mestizo. Mestizos have indigenous and Spanish blood.Most mestizo have more indigenous DNA than Spanish. But, especially the last 25 years, Mexico has had a lot of immigrants. So, who knows what the Mexican DNA will be like in the next few generations. As of now , Mexican DNA leans towards Native American.

She’s being honest and telling you what it really is. This isn’t a joke

Lo tienen difícil, el mundo no puede ser una torre de Babel. 😊

I always tell people that I’m Chicano; but if someone considers me Latino , that’s on them…I can’t control what they think . For myself, it’s not something of importance, I have a family to raise.

I just find it ironic that even though she has been living in the US, she never identifies as an "American" or "US citizen"....

Im mexican i identify as Hispanic

La única forma de darnos el respeto es. Respetándonos entre nosotros Nativos , aprender de nuestro pasado, tenemos desventaja , lo importante es que no estamos extintos, ayudarnos entre nosotros y respetarnos.

What if she's Mexican and native? 😊

I’m mestizo. Who cares what people think or say . We are the majority in America. That’s all that matters

i dont know most latinos have indigenous looks like her or like me (my family came from peru) and i don't feel bothered at all to be called latino, most latinos are mestizos : both european and indigenous blood, thats how we are and there is nothing wrong with it.

Hispanics are people whos descendants come from Spain or Portugal. Latinos/latins are people whos descendants come from latin/rome culture (spain, france, italy, romania & portugal). as a dark skin mixed/mestizo mexican i cant identify as latino or hispanic. i identify as mexican (for the mexica people) since colonization/slavery has disconnected me from my indigenous roots. latino/hispanic is a renaming of us by non indigenous people that by doing so, have put behind our indigenous identity to the point of erasure.

We the Americans people the real natives of this land .

Different people perceive people differently. It happens to me too.

I knew right away she was from Mexico because of her huipil and her Mazahua earrings.

I'm indigenous and I'm Spanish too. You'd have us deny our own existence. We are both.

Oaxaca ❤ ❤

She looks just like Grandma, shes also from Oaxaca.

Oaxaca so she is mexican

Quit assuming latinos arent native americans and saying we shouldnt identify as native or even identify as half native even if we are mestizo (half native /spaniard and or african)

Her message is a little bit confusing, she is misunderstanding the concept of Natiinality. And when you immigrate to another culture, of course is going to be hard, more if you are a child. But I am 100 % with her, we need to protect all those cultures, languages, life stiles, but over all, their natural resources and their right to be there preserve it and manage!!

Indigenous people are through out the Americas. A person born and raised in Mexico is a Mexican🤔 However their native language may not be Spanish. I kept telling my friend that she is indigenous but she didn't want to hear it. One time she called me an African American and I showed her a picture of my mom/dad 😳. I told her that my native language was not English.

Well Reyes is hispanic chico. I am proud to be hispanic Viva Mexico