Y Combinator launches its zine machine
It began as an enigmatic invitation on Partiful: a launch party for “Long Live SF — a celebration of the city of tomorrow — the first issue of something new,” set for Friday, April 17. What emerged was State of the Art, a bold new zine from a rising cohort of dreamers and makers…
‘Give recovery a chance’: Push for drug-free housing gains momentum, with Dorsey at the helm
On the steps of City Hall on Thursday, Supervisor Matt Dorsey held a rally to build support for his drug-free supportive housing legislation ahead of a Public Safety Committee hearing.…
SFMTA budget raises Muni fares, hinges future on November ballot measures
Muni and cable car fares are going up as part of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s approved two-year budget, but a lot remains unknown about what Muni service will…
Learning how to learn takes patience
The day after I’d handed back a three-question quiz, a student marched into class and told me his parent had shown him I had marked his quiz wrong. “That’s always a possibility,” I told him, pulling up a chair to my desk for him. “Let’s take a look.” Here is…
Out and about April 23–29, 2026
The weather may not cooperate for all of the outdoor events in the next few days, so pack your hoodie, but there are also indoor options. Here are my picks. Thursday, April 23 Smuin Contemporary Ballet’s Future Forward features four ballets: Katarzyna Skarpetowka’s Sextette set to music by Bach; Michael…
San Francisco Art Fair 2026 pushes back on the doom loop
The San Francisco Art Fair returned last week amid a cataclysm of news ranging from dastardly to jubilant concerning the state of the arts in the Bay Area (institutional closures, new nonprofits, and charter reform). Walking among so many for whom these changes are top of mind, it took time…
With Eric Swalwell’s scandalous implosion, Xavier Becerra surges in race for California governor
This commentary was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Ten days ago, Congressmember Eric Swalwell was getting very close to becoming the…
San Francisco’s puzzling strategy to improve attendance
The San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) has set audacious goals to improve reading and math. But missing from the equation is a time-proven strategy: Make sure kids come to school. The district’s latest assessment…
Chiharu Shiota’s ‘Two Home Countries’ at the Asian Art Museum marks her first solo exhibition in the Bay Area
The Asian Art Museum’s spring exhibition, Chiharu Shiota: Two Home Countries, weaves memory, absence, and identity with dense networks of red thread and personal and symbolic objects. Visitors won’t be staring at art hanging on…
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“Dr. Trump, Deity,” by Nomi Kane | @Nomikane
The shot that gave me seven days
There is a clinic in San Francisco called the Maria X. Martinez Health Resource Center. You might walk past it and not think much of it. But for me, it was the first place I had ever walked into where nobody looked at me like I was a problem to…
Why justice keeps failing Asian hate victims
History repeats itself. As Garry Tan concluded in his most recent op-ed about why Asian hate so often goes unpunished, it is a cumulative effect of the loudest voices that influence a courtroom, from policy briefs and op-eds to grant-funded studies and legacy media. That voice has been dominated by…
What it means to have a dog when you’re homeless, and what San Francisco’s potential new law gets right (and wrong)
This Thursday, April 9, the public safety committee (made up of supervisors Matt Dorsey, Alan Wong, and Bilal Mahmood) will hear a proposed ordinance amending the Health Code to require that every dog in San Francisco, with certain exceptions, be sterilized (along with licensed, vaccinated, microchipped, and leashed in public areas).…
What we miss when the Board of Education skips its progress monitoring report discussions
Introduction At the last Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, March 24, Board President Phil Kim proposed — and received permission — to merge the eighth-grade algebra discussion and vote with the Progress Monitoring Report for Goal 2 (math). Predictably, the eighth-grade algebra discussion swallowed up the entire allotted time,…
San Francisco’s mental health board, drug policy under scrutiny this week; Pyramid to get landmark status
This week, the highlights at City Hall include the likely reorganization of a commission overseeing mental health policy, support for drug-free supportive housing, and the…
Lurie calls entrepreneurs to Union Square with $25 million fund
On April 16, Mayor Daniel Lurie announced a new $25 million Downtown Business Fund (DBF) aimed at reviving the city’s historic yet struggling Union Square…
Attorney General Rob Bonta’s wife, Mia, is pushing a journalism chill bill to stop corruption reports like the one I wrote about them
California Assembly Bill 2624, authored by Assemblywoman Mia Bonta, cleared initial committee and is set for review by the Assembly’s Judiciary Committee. Building on California’s…
Phoebe Maffei races to court
Phoebe Maffei, an assistant district attorney, is running for San Francisco Superior Court judge against Alexandra Pray of the public defender’s office. They are the…
Legacies, scams, and pitfalls
An ailing artist tries to thwart the plans of his assistant in ‘The Christophers’; a clan and empire are torn apart by murder and betrayal…
SFMOMA to unveil complete transformation of the Doris and Donald Fisher Collection
The Fisher Collection galleries feature nearly 250 works by 35 artists, and beginning later this month, SFMOMA is unveiling its first updated presentation since the…
The art and architecture of San Francisco Maritime Museum
A Balcony on the World, a KQED documentary, uncovers the long-overlooked story of the Aquatic Park Bathhouse building. Now home to the San Francisco Maritime…
Not a ham fan? Roast a fresh pork shoulder instead
I hate ham. You know the one — studded with cloves and topped with pineapple rings from a can, served at the table in many…
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