Saoirse Huriya is going to take part in the San Francisco St. Patrick's Day parade 2026 to celebrate the solidarity between Ireland and Palestine. We believe that justice and freedom in Palestine is the core issue in our mutual efforts to decolonize ourselves and the world. We need to cover expenses and pay the Palestinian musicians as we believe Palestinians should be compensated for their time, talent, and energy. We also need to print t-shirts, make banners, and posters for the event.

There’s a real hunger among a new generation of Irish Americans to get away from the old image of the racist Irish cop and embrace the radical legacy of Mother Jones, the great union organizer from Cork, and the San Patricios who were driven into exile only to find themselves forced to fight native Mexicans, so they switched sides. They want to reject white supremacy. In 2024, a group of Irish and Irish Americans in the Bay Area founded Saoirse Huriya to strengthen the solidarity between Irish America and Palestine. In 2025, we marched in the parade, and the crowd loved it and appreciated that Palestine was kept central.

Something is shifting in Irish America. Palestine is a galvanizing force radicalizing a multi-racial, multi-denominational generation in a way not seen since the Vietnam War. In these circles, the Irish recognition of Palestine as a state is vital and admired. When Americans ask me why Ireland is so connected to Palestine, I tell them that we understand that colonialism is brutal and violent. We know what it’s like to be told our native land belongs to another people. We know what it’s like to be systematically stripped of our culture. We understand that famine is the cruelest form of warfare, and any resistance is viewed as terrorism.

We at Saoirse Huriya intend to galvanize Irish America into action on behalf of Palestinian liberation. We are a grassroots organization of working people and appreciate any support you can give us to make this happen.