“Why We Stay”
Our “Why We Stay” film campaign features youth, small-business owners, leadership, and an elder who share why a permanent home for the American Indian Cultural Center is needed. Watch, share, and stand with us as we build a home for culture, healing, and community. Your story is proof that a permanent American Indian Cultural Center is needed now. When we share, leaders listen, funders act, and the next generation sees what’s possible.
More voices coming soon.
Stories from Our Elders
Featuring artist and Alcatraz Veteran, Kris UrbanRezLife Longoria. Know by her artist tag UrbanRezLife, she’s a Bay Area Indigenous artist, poet, and storyteller—an enrolled citizen of the Caddo Nation—who lived on Alcatraz as a child during the 1969–71 occupation and has since dedicated over two decades to preserving its legacy through art and activism
Stories from Our Leadership
Featuring AICC’s Exectuive Director, April McGill. April is member of the Round Valley Indian Tribes and direct descendant of Yuki and Mishawal Wappo nations. As the Executive Director, she leads advocacy, cultural preservation, and policies to uplift the urban American Indian community.
Stories from Our Bay Area Business Owners
Featuring Joey Montoya, a San Francisco–born Lipan Apache creative and founder of the Indigenous lifestyle brand Urban Native Era, and Christian Routzen, co-founder of the surf-inspired streetwear brand San Franpsycho, are redefining modern cultural expression and community building through fashion, storytelling, and youth-driven advocacy.
Stories from Our Youth
Featuring Kauchani Bratt, a San Francisco native of Quechua and Coahuiltecan heritage and rising actor starring in Netflix’s Rez Ball (2024), and Michael Klinker, Program Coordinator at the American Indian Cultural Center, work together to elevate Native storytelling, youth voices, and cultural preservation in San Francisco.