SOMA Pilipinas Filipino Cultural Heritage District

11/16/2025

It’s time! The lights are coming back to SOMA Pilipinas. ✨

The 23rd Annual Parol Lantern Festival & Parade is happening on Saturday, December 13 (3–8PM) at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, and the whole neighborhood is invited.

Every year, we gather to celebrate the parol, a symbol of light, resilience, and bayanihan. It’s our reminder that even in the darkest times, we shine brighter together.

Expect:
⭐ Taste of Christmas
⭐ Parol Stroll & Parade
⭐ Tala Awards
⭐ MAKIBAKA: A Living Legacy exhibition inside YBCA

Bring your friends, your family, your org, your kapitbahay! Make a lantern and march with us in the parade.

Visit the LINK IN THE COMMENTS for more details. Make sure to follow and sign up for our newsletter so you don’t miss out!
Save the date, shine your light. ✨

Presented by Filipino American Development Foundation (FADF)

Produced by SOMA Pilipinas
In collaboration with YBCA and Yerba Buena Gardens Festival

Funders:
Yerba Buena partnership
MOHCD
OEWD

10/01/2025

Update as of 10/22: In light of news of major ICE deployment to San Francisco, we’re postponing Tasty Trails for now, so we can stay focused on community care and readiness. Visit the link in comments for more resources.

Anong ganap this FAHM? 🇵🇭☀️

October is Filipino American History Month, and we’ve got a full line-up of events in SOMA Pilipinas to celebrate our history, culture, and community:

🟡 Oct 2 – Sa Amin Community Film Screening (6PM, YBCA)
🟡 Oct 5 – Sunday Streets: FAHM Stage (12–4PM, Russ St. btw Howard & Folsom)
🟡 Oct 12 – MAKIBEKI: SOMA Pilipinas Pride (12–5PM, YBCA)
🟡 Oct 24 – Tasty Trails: 3rd x South Park Tour (4–7PM)
🟡 Oct 30 – Shaping Legacy Project: Story Circle (6PM, Bayanihan Center)

These are just a few of the many FAHM events happening across the city! If your group is hosting something, we’d love to help uplift it. Submit your event at the link in the comments!

05/06/2025

05/01/2025

We warmly invite you to an upcoming Know Your Rights Workshop and Community Forum hosted by Malaya SF, SOMA Pilipinas, Tanggol Migrante, and Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance SF Chapter (APALA).

This community event is designed to support and empower immigrant workers and those concerned about the safety of our vulnerable community members. Join us for an informative and welcoming gathering where you’ll learn about how to access local resources and ways to protect yourself and your family.

📅 Date: Thursday, May 8, 2025

🕓 Time: 5:30-7:30 PM

📍 Location: San Francisco Public Library - Latino/Hispanic Room, 100 Larkin St. San Francisco, CA

🎉 RSVP with the link: tinyurl.com/DMN0508

03/06/2025

SOMA Pilipinas will be exhibiting artworks that highlight SOMA Pilipinas' past, present, and future at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts from August 1 - December 14, 2025.

SOMA Pilipinas invites artists to submit artworks that:
🔹Pay homage to the generations before us that forged the Filipino community’s living legacy of building community through the bayanihan spirit throughout San Francisco, with special focus on the South of Market neighborhood
🔹Document our community’s lived experiences and efforts to re/claim space and
🔹Imagine Filipinx futures amidst an ever changing South of Market neighborhood and City.

This call is open to visual artwork (2D work including: painting, mixed-media, photography); 3D sculptural objects; and short-form video works. Selected artworks will be exhibited in an upcoming historical and community-arts based exhibition to be presented at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts from August 1 - December 14, 2025.
Deadline to submit is March 31st, 2025 at 8PM PST.

For more information and the submission link, please click here:
https://www.somapilipinas.org/sp-callforartworks-25

12/13/2024

https://www.nbcbayarea.com/entertainment/california-live/learn-how-to-make-a-traditional-filipino-christmas-decoration-the-parol/3735057/

California Live’s Jobeth Devera is with MC Canlas, the founder of the “Parol Lantern Festival” in San Francisco, learning about the history of this unique Christmas decoration for many Filipino families and how one is made.

12/05/2024

Get ready for a lineup of community performers who will grace our stage during this year's Parol Lantern Festival. In the FORUM, we'll have:

⭐ Manilatown Ancestral Ensemble: The Manilatown Ancestral Ensemble, a project of the Manilatown Heritage Foundation and the International Hotel Manilatown Center, presents the pre-colonial music, dance, and attire traditions of the Maguindanao, Maranao and Kalinga Philippine ethnolinguistic groups

⭐ Ukulenny: Lenny San Jose aka Ukulenny is an ukulele performer and teacher based in Oakland. A sponsored Kala artist, he continues to preach the ukulele gospel, performing primarily as a solo loop pedal artist but also with the groups Bob and Lenny Show (jazz duo), and Dos Pogi Boys (island reggae trio).

⭐ FEC Galing Bata Program: For over two decades, the FEC Galing Bata Program has empowered San Francisco’s youth and their families, particularly those from historically impacted communities such as Filipino immigrants, Filipino Americans, low-income, and English language learners, through culturally responsive and linguistically sensitive programming.

⭐ FILIPINX: Filipinx is an all Filipino drag group made up of seven drag performers from the Bay Area, Yves Saint Croissant, Nia Politan, Phoebe Cakes, Tila Pia, Sassi Fran, Nutasha Quintine, and Tsunomi Punoni.

⭐ Kulintaiko: What would the indigenous gong music of the Southern Philippines called Kulintang sound like when paired with the thundering Taiko drums of Japan along with a dash of percussion and a hint of saxophone? KULINTAIKO!

⭐ Mavy-E: Mavy E is a rising hip-hop artist from SOMA, San Francisco, known for his smooth flow, confident lyricism, and a fresh take on West Coast rap. His music blends swagger, romance, and raw authenticity, reflecting his deep roots in the SOMA community.

⭐ DJ BiteSize: Bitesize is a party rocker/sound selector from the Bay Area. Playing various types of music that will surely get you grooving or in a good mood!

Stay tuned for more Parol Lantern Festival performances and activities, and don't forget to RSVP with the link down below👇
https://bit.ly/3OrXxwP

Collaborators: SF Parol Lantern Fest , SOMCAN SF

12/04/2024

This Parol Lantern Festival, join our annual parade contingent by organizing a group to stroll with during the parade to showcase your parol lanterns. Deadline to apply as a group contingent is December 6! ✨

This year, the parol stroll parade will begin at Jesse Square and make our way through the beautiful Yerba Buena Gardens Festival , showcasing a stunning display of our parol lanterns. Each lantern, crafted with care and creativity, will illuminate our path, creating a magical atmosphere as we celebrate culture and community together!🌟

Sign up with the link down below!👇

Parol Stroll Contingent Deadline: December 6, 2024
SF Parol Lantern Fest
SOMCAN SF

11/26/2024

VMD 100 🎂🥇🥇: SOMA Pilipinas invites you to celebrate Victoria Manalo Draves in advance of what would have been her 100th Birthday this December.

Please come to our community celebration on Thursday, December 5, 2024 from 5-7PM at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (701 Mission St) to commemorate her legacy.

This event will feature a gift of FREE posters of Vicki Manalo Draves illustrated by artist Jenifer K Wofford (), poetry and stories by SOMA Pilipinas Poet Laureate Oscar Peñaranda (), and a sports identity ceremony facilitated by Coach Carolyn Sideco of Coaching Kapwa ().

Victoria Manalo Draves was a Filipina American diver who grew up South of Market. She was the first Asian American gold medalist, the first American woman to win two gold medals in diving, and the first woman of any nation to be awarded gold medals for both platform and springboard in the same Games (London 1948) in Olympics history.

Learn more and RSVP Link with this link!
somapilipinas.typeform.com/vmd100dives

10/30/2024

Bring the Filipino holiday tradition to life with SOMA Pilipinas-Filipino Cultural Heritage District! Join us this weekend for a hands-on Parol Lantern Making Workshop at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts ! Whether you're new to parol-making or a seasoned crafter, come and share in this festive celebration of hope and light. ✨🌟

Make yours at your next two workshops this Saturday and Sunday:
🌟 Saturday, November 2
🌟 Sunday, November 3
12-4 PM at YBCA, 701 Mission Street.

Sign up down below! Suggested donation: $20 adults, $10 youth and seniors. Sliding scale available.

10/23/2024

Bring light and joy to your homes and the Filipino Cultural Heritage District with your very own parol lanterns!

🌟Join us for our next parol making workshop on Sunday, October 27 at the YBCA Grand Lobby Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (701 Mission Street) from 12-4 PM. 🌟

Materials and instruction will be provided. To participate, we invite a $20 suggested donation for each parol kit and $10 for youth and seniors.

Register now for an upcoming workshop with the link down below!

Photos in this post are from our latest parol workshop last Sunday!