WILL KARR
Life & Arts Editor
As a young child, Fredonia student Dakota Garcia would parade around his house in his dad’s work boots and overalls, and his mom’s high heels and dresses. His parents provided him and his siblings with the liberty and agency to openly express themselves, breaking down gender norms and distinctions in the process.
“Growing up … we didn’t really have phones, [my siblings and I] were always playing outside, playing dress up and playing with dolls,” Garcia said. “My mom and dad kind of let us experiment with that a bit … like if I put on a dress, they wouldn’t say anything.”
Unlike his parents, Garcia admits that not everyone allowed him to freely explore his interests.
“There were times when not my parents, but other people would say things to me,” he said. “… Like my grandpa and grandma would say to my parents, ‘Why do you let him play with that stuff? He’s a boy.’”
Garcia is a sophomore biology major from the small town of Derby, NY. After graduating from SUNY Fredonia, he plans to attend medical school. In addition to science, he is passionate about fashion, sports and social media, but most of all, helping others.
He has amassed over 140,000 followers across his different social media platforms, which include Instagram (@garciadakota) and TikTok (@garciadakota).
In 2021, Garcia modeled in Victoria’s Secret Campus Pride social media campaign, which helped raise money to make college campuses across the U.S. safer spaces for LGBTQ+ individuals.
At the beginning of this past September, he walked in his first runway show during New York Fashion Week for the Black-owned, LA-based clothing brand Orunmila, through The Modeling Experience.
“My New York Fashion Week experience was very fun and fulfilling. My friend brought the [opportunity] up to me through social media and I applied for it,” Garcia said.“… I went through the application process, met with some great designers and walked the runway. It was the company’s first time putting on a show in NYC, and they had over 800 models walk during that day alone.”
Garcia has been into fashion ever since he was a little kid. He grew up in a large family of ten siblings: eight brothers and two sisters. At the age of 12, he started posting videos showcasing his personal style online for the first time ever. As he approached his mid-teen years, his social media posts really started to take off and resonate with an online audience.
“When I started off, I wanted people to see my own unique fashion, and it kind of just branched off from there. People started following me and sending me direct messages asking where I got my clothes from,” Garcia said. “… Social media became an outlet for me to really let my creativity flow.”
When people ask Garcia where he gets all his clothes from, he said that he never has a definitive or solid answer to give. He finds most of his clothes at thrift shops. High-waisted pants, short sleeved v-neck sweaters and pearl necklaces have all become signature staples in Garcia’s wardrobe. However, he said that his style often shifts depending on the weather and the seasons.
“I kind of change my clothes based on the emotions and the seasons,” Garcia said. “Right now it’s fall, so you’ll probably see me in more earthy tones: oranges, greens and browns. … I love pairing clothes that have the same color or that have an orientation together.”
In today’s society, while clothing is often gendered, Garcia prefers to forego adhering to gender labels and distinctions.
“Clothing doesn’t have a gender; it’s for everybody. Sports doesn’t have a gender either; it’s for everyone,” he said. “We just perceive it as male or female dominated.”
Garcia chooses to wear whatever his heart desires. Growing up, he expressed that he never felt like he fit into a single box due to his wide range of interests.
“I played football, wrestling, track and cross country, but I still always liked fashion. I think there’s this weird boundary or tension between masculine and feminine — like clothing is ‘feminine’ and sports are ‘masculine,’”Garcia said. “I don’t think that’s true. I think anyone can do sports and anyone can do fashion, it does not just pertain to one single gender. People would see me in a sports uniform one day and outside of sports, I’m wearing pink, a v-neck and pearls another day.”
Garcia, however, believes that the tendency to distinguish things by gender is declining and reversing. With new generations, new values and ideals rise and often come to fruition.
“I think people are definitely scared to express themselves,” he said. “But, with us being one of the new generations, we are very open minded, where the generations before us may have not been.”
Garcia offered some tips to individuals that may be struggling to feel confident in their own skin. He is glad when people reach out to him for fashion advice.
“I would say wear whatever you feel comfortable in … your character shows the clothes,” he said. “If you are confident in whatever you are wearing, it’s going to look good. If you walk confidently, head up high and shoulders back, people are going to look at you and say that’s a really good fit because of the character and how you are presenting it … fashion right now is everyone’s own unique taste.”
Although he has a keen passion for fashion, Garcia ultimately wants to pursue a career in the healthcare field.
“I love fashion to death. But, I’m going for biology with the hopes of becoming a physician assistant,” Garcia said.“… As much as I love fashion, for me, it will always be a hobby.”
Growing up, Garcia said that he spent a lot of time in hospitals, which fostered his medical aspirations.
“In a family of 10 siblings, there was always someone beating someone up and someone getting a black eye,” he said. “… I was always in doctor’s offices and I saw how they could help others.”
Garcia is now eager to give back, turning what he witnessed as a child into action as an adult.
“Growing up in a very small poor town, I saw some people going through things and I couldn’t do anything to help them,” he said. “But now that I am older, I feel like I can help once I get into the field.”
Overall, whether it’s fashion or practicing medicine, Garcia loves making an impact in whatever capacities he can.
“I really love helping people,” Garcia said. “I can not see someone who is sad, someone who is going through something, and just turn away and not look at them.”
If you would like to receive fashion advice from Garcia or to be featured in our next issue as a fashionista, please direct message us at our instagram page (@leaderfredonia) or email Life & Arts Editor, Will Karr at karr6505@fredonia.edu .