George Takei, Women's History Month and more!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
One Book, One Coast: They Called Us Enemy |
The regional reading initiative One Book, One Coast unites libraries and communities across California, Oregon and Washington around a shared book and conversation. The 2026 selection, They Called Us Enemy, is George Takei’s graphic memoir of his childhood incarceration during World War II. Read along and attend the programs happening March through May 2026 to join the discussions it inspires.
Pick up They Called Us Enemy in print or as an eBook this spring. Find it on Libby or on display at your local library, and join readers in San Francisco and across the coast.
Save the Date: George Takei Virtual Author Talk — Streamed from Long Beach Public Library; May 31, 2 p.m., Main Library, Koret Auditorium, Lower Level |
|
|
|
| |
 |
Lead, Learn and Earn with YELL |
Paid, part-time summer internships are open for teens. Build work and life skills, create projects and explore everything the library offers when you join the 2026 Youth Engaged in Library Leadership (YELL) cohort. Find out more. |
|
|
|
|
 |
Celebrate amazing women who have shaped the world at the Library during Women’s History Month. |
|
|
Button Maker and Trivia Game
| Make HERstory buttons and play
a women’s history–themed trivia
game. For ages 8 and older. March 7, 2:30 p.m., Noe Valley |
|
| |
Alma Thomas: Learn and Paint
| Discover artist Alma Thomas’s
iconic abstract style and make
a mini painting. For ages 4–18.
Space limited. Seats available
first come, first served. March 8, 2 p.m., Mission Bay |
|
|
|
Georgia O' Keeffe Painting
| Create your own Georgia O’Keeffe–inspired work of art and learn about the pioneering American painter. For ages 5–15. March 8, 3 p.m., Merced |
|
| |
Singing for Justice Screening
| Watch the film and join a Q&A with the filmmakers to explore how American folk singer and activist Faith Petric resisted inequality through music, activism and community engagement. March 14, 2 p.m., Main Library, Koret Auditorium, Lower Level |
|
|
|
Suffragist Pins and Roses
| Learn about the women’s suffrage movement and craft symbols of support inspired by history. For children ages 7 and older. March 19, 2:30 p.m., Sunset |
|
| |
Prodigal Daughter Screening
| Watch the film and participate in a live conversation with its award-winning director and a leader from local organization Mujeres Unidas y Activas. March 29, 1 p.m., Main Library, Koret Auditorium, Lower Level |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Celebrating SWANA |
Discover stories, art and traditions throughout March at Library events celebrating the vibrant cultures of Southwest Asia and North Africa. Activities include Ramadan crescent moon mobiles, poetry, meditation, belly dancing, tatreez and more. Find out more. |
|
|
|
 |
Tax Season Success |
Tax Season Success continues! Face April 15 with confidence. Get expert tax advice from workshops
on avoiding trouble with the IRS and tax strategies for parents,
families, artists, freelancers and small businesses. Find out more. |
|
|
|
 |
Chinese Herbal Medicine Day | 中文 |
Learn the ways everyday foods and herbs can work together to promote wellness in a gentle, lifestyle-friendly way. Enjoy a panel with experts, personalized herbal
consultations tailored to your needs and a live demonstration of Tit Tar therapy. Space limited. Registration required.
活動以粵語進行 活動以國語進行
March 15, 12 p.m., Main Library, Koret Auditorium, Lower Level; 1 p.m., Main Library, Atrium, 1st Floor; RSVP now |
|
| |
 |
Dogpatch Small Business Stroll |
Explore the Dogpatch neighborhood during this guided Small Business Stroll presented by the Library’s Small Business Center in partnership with the Dogpatch Art & Business Association. Stop by local shops to browse their offerings and connect with artists and entrepreneurs. March 14, 2 p.m., Woods Yard Park, 22nd and Minnesota Streets |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Bayview |
Celebrate Bayview Branch’s 13th anniversary with an afternoon of festivities for all ages. Activities include line dancing, an SF Symphony performance, community group resource tabling, giveaway books and light refreshments. March 7, 11 a.m. |
|
| |
 |
Sunset |
Enjoy Sunset Branch’s annual open house with a fun-filled day including Fat Chance Belly Dance and the Brian Scott Magic
Show. Additional highlights include book giveaways, button making, craft activities and light refreshments. March 21, 1 p.m. |
|
|
|
 |
Presidio |
The Presidio Branch open house features Tree Frog Treks, SF Symphony violinists, book giveaways for all ages, button making and light refreshments. March 28, 1 p.m. |
|
| |
|
|
|
Faye Myenne Ng's Orphan Bachelors
|
|
|
| |
What happens when immigration laws leave generations of men cut off from family, home and a sense of belonging? In Orphan Bachelors, Fae Myenne Ng tells an intimate immigrant story shaped by the Chinese Exclusion era. Drawing on her childhood in San Francisco’s Chinatown, Ng brings forward the lives of isolated men whose quiet endurance formed the backdrop of her family life.
Blending memoir with social history, Ng reveals how policy becomes personal, shaping identity, responsibility and survival across generations. Orphan Bachelors is a moving meditation on inheritance, memory and the long afterlife of laws that fractured families and communities. |
|
|
|
|
|
Faith Petric and the San Francisco Folk Music Club Archives
|
|
|
A political radical, community organizer and performer, Faith Petric left an enduring mark on San Francisco’s folk music scene. In 2012, she donated the archives of the San Francisco Folk Music Club (SFFMC) to the San Francisco History Center, preserving decades of music history. Founded in 1948 by Dave Rothkop, the SFFMC was reorganized in 1959 by Herb Jager, and in 1962 Petric took the helm, guiding the club through a period of growth and activism.
|
|
| |
 |
Faith Petric, 1987. Image courtesy of Singing for Justice. |
|
|
|
In 1964, SFFMC began publishing The Folknik, a bimonthly newsletter that documented performances, politics and community life. Dedicated to the dissemination and preservation of folk music, SFFMC brought together singers, instrumentalists, songwriters, dancers and devoted listeners.
Collection includes meeting minutes, newsletters, member directories, correspondence, flyers and buttons—and is open for research.
Singing for Justice Screening — March 14, 2 p.m., Main Library, Koret Auditorium, Lower Level |
|
|
|
|
|
Women’s History Month: Two Gale Databases You Can Use
|
|
|
In celebration of Women’s History Month, explore two databases of special interest:
Contemporary Women’s Issues (Gale) covers women’s studies literature from journals, newsletters and reports from 1992 to the present.
LGBTQ: Archives of Sexuality and Gender (Gale) covers historical, cultural, policy, political, psychology and health studies related to LGBTQIA+ and women’s history, activism and related issues from 1940 to the present.
Both databases provide advanced search, peerreviewed publications, full text plus citation capability and more useful features. Whether you are interested in historical or contemporary aspects of women’s issues, they are invaluable tools, hidden gems among the Library's eResources. |
|
|
|
|
Author Katie Kitamura in Conversation with Karen Russell
|
|
|
Explore the unsettling emotional terrain of Audition as Katie Kitamura discusses her latest novel in conversation with Swamplandia! author Karen Russel, covering themes of power, desire and the fragile boundaries between who we are and who we pretend to be.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
SF Music Week is here! Enjoy a citywide celebration of the artists, venues and communities shaping the sound of San Francisco. From February 23–March 1, music workshops, panels, live music and more will be taking place all over the City for both listeners and artists.
|
|
|
 |
SF Music Week: Artist Development Day |
Built for independent artists and bands, Artist Development Day is a deep dive into the business of being an artist. Learn how to grow your career without losing your voices through skills such as how to protect your creative interests, navigate the music industry and more.
Feb. 28, 10 a.m., Public Works, 161 Erie Street; RSVP now |
|
| |
|
|
| |
 |
Celebration: 50 Years of SF Punk |
Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the birth of punk rock in San Francisco. Featuring a punk history presentation, a panel discussion with punk pioneers and a high-energy performance by artists new and old. Co-presented by Radio Valencia. Feb. 28, 3 p.m., Mabuhay Gardens and On Broadway, 435 Broadway |
|
|
|
Main Library
100 Larkin St.
San Francisco, CA 94102 sfpl.org |
|
|
