Wexford’s Frederick Douglass Festival: music, food and new connections
by 
Babylon Radio
Listen nowMusic, shared food and an art exhibition offer three ways into Wexford’s Frederick Douglass Civil Rights Festival this November. The festival runs from 6 to 21 November 2026, with a programme that connects local cultural life with questions of freedom, equality and belonging.
For international residents, it is a chance to meet people through a meal or performance while exploring a link between Ireland and African American history. You can choose one event rather than commit to the whole programme.
Meet neighbours over food
World on a Plate: Ó Chroí takes place on Sunday 15 November, from 1pm to 4pm, at St Joseph’s Community Centre in Bishopswater. The organisers describe a family-friendly gathering of food, music and cultural exchange, developed with Wexford Local Development. Tickets are advertised at €10.
This is the programme’s most direct invitation to get to know Wexford’s established and newer communities. The informal format lets visitors come and go during the afternoon.
Make an evening of the music
The Wexford Arts Centre programme includes Let the People Sing! on Saturday 14 November. The concert brings together music, spoken word and song, with Rita Perry, Jamie Bishop, Stephen Dunne and Farah Elle among the announced performers.
The festival website lists a 7.30pm start and tickets at €20, or €18 concession. Choose this if a live performance is your preferred introduction to the festival, then follow the organiser’s booking link for current availability.
Explore the exhibition and the history
The art exhibition opens at Wexford Arts Centre on Friday 6 November at 6pm, with free entry, and continues until 21 November. The venue also lists The Agitator’s Wife, a play reading, on Thursday 12 November.
Douglass was an American abolitionist, writer and campaigner who escaped slavery. The Museum of Literature Ireland’s online exhibition traces his 1845 visit to Ireland, including lectures in Wexford. Reading a little of that history before attending gives the festival’s name a local as well as an international meaning.
Check the festival programme for the event you choose: the community meal is at St Joseph’s, while the concert and exhibition are at the Arts Centre. Free exhibition entry does not cover ticketed performances or the meal. Times are local to Ireland.