Mission District | National Geographic

each Sunday the bells of the Mission
Dolores Basilica call local parishioners
to prayer the sounds of midday Mass are
a legacy of Spanish missionaries who
build a sturdy house of worship in 1776
that still stands today and is the
foundation for a neighborhood the
Mission District over the years Irish
German and Italian immigrants have all
called the mission home but the latest
wave is mostly Hispanic coming from
Mexico and from Central and South
America and their contributions to the
neighborhood’s cultural identity are
evident on the walls in the food
we share our griefs we share our Joy’s
whether to share sorrow or celebrate
life the music of the mission has had a
profound effect so are the colors of the
district drawing on the area’s cultural
traditions public art here became an
expression of heritage and protest about
los desaparecidos if Mission Dolores was
the foundation of the district this
church is now the cornerstone here
families gather from Mexico El Salvador
Peru the congregation is a veritable
organization of Latin American States
and they bring with them the best of
their own country particularly their
interest in their families their
interest in their traditions and what I
see going on here in a very very
positive way is an integration of the
best of Latin American culture now with
American culture in the Mission District
immigrants have made this corner of San
Francisco uniquely their own