Promoting Irish-American Culture
and Preserving Local Histories
Through Year-Round Programs

FAQs

Why does Irish-American Crossroads Matter?

San Francisco is a global capital of arts and culture with a significant Irish & Irish-American history that deserves to have a world-class Festival and Archive dedicated to its Irish & Irish-American heritage.

The Irish contribution to the formation of San Francisco and its surrounding region is enormous, yet has never been fully documented or broadly understood.  This organization, with support from the Irish Government,  has created the first-ever Irish Oral History Archive, awarded to the  Irish-American Crossroads Festival.  There is a West African proverb that states, “If a person dies without his or her story being told, that’s like a library burning down.”  We are in an excellent position to literally build the library of these collected voices of the Irish in San Francisco Bay Area so that the richness of these myriad stories is not lost to the flames of time.

We recognize that the contributions of the Irish to San Francisco are part of a larger story about the history of the western United States.  The opportunities in front of us to record the depth and breadth of this history, both for the legacy of the local community and for the historical value it possesses for the region and entire country, are vastly important.

What Programs Are Produced by Irish-American Crossroads?

Since 2004, Irish-American Crossroads has produced the beloved Irish-American Crossroads Festival in the San Francisco Bay Area.  Since 2010, Crossroads has also produced the Irish Oral History Archive of the San Francisco Bay Area and the Crossroads Irish-American Writing Contest.  We also produce the on-going monthly newsletter that announces Crossroads events plus scores of other cultural events that are also happening in the community.

Is Irish-American Crossroads a 501 (c) (3) organization?

No. Not yet.  We are fiscally sponsored by Intersection For The Arts, a seasoned arts group in the SF Bay Area.  We hope to incorporate in the next 4 few years.