March 20th, 5:00 PM PT Free to attend (donations appreciated)
Please join Eth-Noh-Tec on March 20th at 5PM PT for “Women Warriors of the Word,” an evening of authors and a poet who will share their writings that address our resilience against many odds. There will be a chance to ask questions, to listen to each other, and in this way, create a community even for this hour and a half we will be with each other on Zoom.
Mindful Musings: “Women Warriors of the Word,” with Nancy Wang, Ayn Gailey & Genny Lim
Genny Lim, San Francisco’s Poet Laureate, a fierce woman warrior of words, writes with blazing truth and deep minings of who we are as women, as human beings, as Asian Americans, as people of color, the carriers of life. She is warm, funny and even sings!
Ayn Gailey, another woman warrior of words, has written for Elle, Latina, Showtime and Kinfolk and is in the throes of completing her debut novel. Her memoir was adapted into the movie A Nice Girl Like You in 2020. She is hapa – half Taiwanese and half Mexican with a perspective of growing up in a world that decides who you are and who you aren’t. Her writings are delicious and give us a view into a world that many of us are not privy to.
Nancy Wang, the third woman warrior of words, will read a chapter of her newly published Red Altar novel that will celebrate resilience confronting racist violence that occurred in 1906 and today reverberates into our communities once again.
The Palestinian Village, Wadi Foquin is located in the Bethlehem District of the West Bank, and is threatened by land takeover with the presence and expansion of the illegal Israeli settlement of Betar Illit. With accelerated violence and military presence in the village during the last year, Friends of Wadi Foquin organized a “Protective Presence Trip” to the village in January 2025. Rev. Yoshii was among five persons who made the trip, and will provide a report back from the visit.
For those who prefer attending program online on a live zoom broadcast, on Feb 23rd at 1pm, log in to this zoom ink: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89849603176
Since 1982, Eastwind Books of Berkeley has been a major source for Asian American literature, Asian Studies, Ethnic Studies, Language Learning, Traditional Chinese Medicine and Martial Arts books. https://www.asiabookcenter.com/
The Friends of Wadi Foquin support community development projects in the village, organize annual trips to the region, and provide advocacy on behalf ot the village. .
Rev. Michael Yoshii is Pastor Emeritus at the Buena Vista United Methodist Church in Alameda where he served as Sr. Pastor from 1988 to 2020. He is also Co-Chair of the Friends of Wadi Foquin, a partnership initiated in 2009 at the Alameda church with the West Bank Palestinian village of Wadi Foquin. Yoshii’s life experience encouraged him to work to support Palestine. During WWII, Yoshii’s Japanese American parents were forced to leave their home and were incarcerated in a U.S.interment camp by the U.S. government until the war ended.
Genny Lim, the 9th San Francisco Poet Laureate (2025), opens the program with poetry. Lim is the first Chinese American given this honor in San Fancisco. She is co-author of Island: Poetry and History of Chinese Immigrants on Angel Island, 1910-1940.
Noura Khouri will be joining the conversation with Rev. Yoshii on the present situation and beyond. Khouri is a U.S. born Palestinian human rights activist and community organizer based in Oakland, California. Over the past two decades, Noura has dedicated herself to advocating for Palestinian rights, serving as a campaign strategist and organizer. She has lived and worked in occupied Palestine and Egypt, gaining firsthand experience in the role and impact of US foreign policy on the region.
Feb. 11, 2025, 5–7 p.m. Koret Auditorium, SF Main Library, 100 Larkin St. San Francisco
An exciting, kinetic procession of Indian and West African dance and drums joined together with Chinese lion dancers kicks off an electrifying evening of music, dance and poetry with San Francisco’s new poet laureate Genny Lim and former poet laureate Tongo Eisen-Martin this Tuesday, February 11, at the Main Library. San Francisco Human Rights Commission and San Francisco Public Library, in partnership with Booker T. Washington Community Service Center, the API Heritage Foundation and Friends of the San Francisco Public Library, are thrilled to present the 3rd Annual Drumbeats, Heartbeats, Communities as One celebration of the Lunar New Year and Black History Month.
“The Joint Celebration of Lunar New Year and Black History Month is an amazing opportunity to bring to gather two of San Francisco’s integral communities to celebrate unique cultures and share experiences. In view of the movement to dismantle appreciation for diversity in the country, it is upon us to step up and amplify all the contributions of diverse communities to our City,” said Claudine Cheng, APA Heritage Foundation President. “The APA Heritage Foundation is proud to partner with the San Francisco Public Library, the Human Rights Commission and Booker T. Washington Community Center in hosting this annual celebration for the third year.”
“Drumbeats, Heartbeats is a testament to the power of unity and cultural exchange. At a time when division threatens to overshadow our shared humanity, this event brings together the African American and Asian communities to celebrate resilience, artistry and history. As the San Francisco Human Rights Commission marks its 61st anniversary, we are reminded of our ongoing mission to advance equity, inclusion and justice for all. The San Francisco Human Rights Commission is honored to stand with our community partners in fostering a city where diversity is not only acknowledged but uplifted as our greatest strength,” said Mawuli Tugbenyoh, Acting Executive Director of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission.
This year’s program highlights artists and performers representing the African American and Asian communities, and the event attendees will gather afterwards to enjoy a meal of mixed Asian and Black cuisines for all to share. Performers include Duniya Dance and Drum Company, LionDanceME, current SF poet laureate Lim, former poet laureate Eisen-Martin and the youth group Loco Bloco.
“We’re thrilled to bring back this exciting cultural celebration,” said Michael Lambert, City Librarian. “Our City is intentional about recognizing the beauty and unique contributions of our diverse Asian American diaspora and our African American community. And that is what makes the City and County of San Francisco so special; our diversity is our strength.”
This program is produced through a partnership of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission, San Francisco Public Library, the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library, APA Heritage Foundation and Booker T. Washington Community Center, as well as with the community support of the Japantown Community Benefit District, Nihonmachi Street Fair, Value Culture, East West Bank, Asians Are Strong, Chinese Culture Center and Dear Community.
Sunday, February 2, 2025 3:00pm – 5:00pm Koret Auditorium
San Francisco Main Library 100 Larkin Street San Francisco, CA 94102
An afternoon of poetry, youth performances and music to mark the inauguration of San Francisco’s 9th Poet Laureate, Genny Lim, at the San Francisco Main Library.
Hosted by City Librarian Michael Lambert, the event featured performances by youth poets from Youth Speaks, a youth chorus from Clarion Children’s Theater, past San Francisco poets laureates Kim Shuck, devorah major and Alejandro Murguía with live art by Adrian Arias, and a reading by writer Kevin Simmonds.
Genny Lim, Poet Laureate of San Francisco. Photo: Kit Castagne
Lim was appointed as the city’s poet laureate in September 2024 by then Mayor London Breed. As part of her required duties as laureate, she will host an inaugural event to celebrate her poetic vision for San Francisco.
Lim is the first Chinese American appointed to the city’s three-year poet laureate position. She was born and raised in San Francisco’s Chinatown and North Beach neighborhoods and is a graduate of San Francisco State University and Columbia University. Her writing has been widely awarded and published.
Sun., January 26, 2025, 1pm San Mateo Main Library Oak Room, 55 W 3rd Ave., San Mateo, CA 94402
The Asian American Curriculum Project co-hosts their 7th poetry event.
In the coming years, when communities may become even more divided and fearful of one another, it may be more important than ever that we make efforts to bridge the chasm and to also support those in need. Stopping hate cannot be done in isolation. At our event, AAPI poets come together to help spread peace, love and understanding.
We invite everyone — Poets, people who enjoy poetry, and anyone desiring an enjoyable afternoon to come to our event. Share your New Year’s poetry writings during our open mic or just sit back and enjoy listening to others.
Featuring Guest Poets and Performers: Genny Lim Frances Kakugawa Brian Komei Dempster Charlie Chin and Victor Labrador
Sponsored by Asian American Curriculum Project, Asian Law Caucus, Stop AAPI Hate, Self-Help For the Elderly, San Mateo Japanese American Community Center, San Mateo JACL, and the San Mateo Library System
For more information, visit the Asian American Curriculum Project@ asianamericanbooks.com
Wednesday, January 8, 2025 5:30 PM – 9:00 PM Grant Avenue (between Sacramento & Jackson, Ross Alley & Commercial Street) FREE and open to the public
San Francisco, the oldest Chinatown in the United States, celebrates with an evening of food, culture, and community at the Chinatown Night Market & Community Festival, held in honor of Daniel Lurie’s inauguration as the 46th mayor of San Francisco on Wednesday, January 8.
Web Gallery
2025 Mayoral Inauguration Celebration in Chinatown: Francis Wong and Genny Lim perform at Edge on the Square
2025 Mayoral Inauguration Celebration in Chinatown: Francis Wong and Genny Lim perform at Edge on the Square
2025 Mayoral Inauguration Celebration in Chinatown: Francis Wong and Genny Lim perform at Edge on the Square
In Your Ear is a cool fusion of jazz and Latin music, giving voice to musicians deserving wider recognition, and showing that jazz and Afro-Caribbean music are separate, but “branches of the same tree” as the late Afro-jazz pioneer Mario Bauza used to stress. Hosted by Art Sato.
Passing Through: An Evening of Poetry and Music Inspired by, Loved by, and Left Behind by Leonard Cohen November 8, 2024, 7:30PM Swedish American Hall
A November celebration of the words, music, and spirit of Leonard Cohen in San Francisco. Hosted by San Francisco’s Conspiracy of Beards, a choir of men that sing the songs of Leonard Cohen, the SF Leonard Cohen Festival is a multi-artist, multi-event celebration of the poetry, literature, and music of the late singer, songwriter, author, and poet.
The three-night festival began on November 8th with works inspired by, loved by, and left behind by Cohen and performed by the city’s poets, including 2024 Poet Laureate Genny Lim, Alejandro Murguía, Tess Taylor, and Gregory Pond, and local musicians Middle Harbor Songbirds, Ruby Lee Hill, Josh “Yosh” Warren, and the female choir, Conspiracy of Venus.
“What makes him so special, his songs are like journals of his life. And because they’re so deeply personal and intimate, they become universal, because everyone can identify with his struggles, his conflicts, his love affairs, his heartbreaks, his grappling with his spirituality, and his self-criticism as a human being.”
— GENNY LIM on LEONARD COHEN
Genny Lim at the 2024 San Francisco Leonard Cohen Festival. Photo by Jon Bauer
Genny was among the artists featured in this piece by PBS News Hour special correspondent Mike Cerre, who went to the annual Leonard Cohen Festival in San Francisco to hear why Leonard Cohen’s music and poetry is celebrated by older and younger generations.
