A shifting memorial to Jack Hirschman set for Saturday in North Seaside
A celebration of the life of the fourth San Francisco Poet Laureate will wind its way through North Beach on Saturday, meeting several of his favorite spots.
Jack Hirschman died on August 22, 2021 at the age of 87 after a life of poetry, art and social engagement. In 1973 he moved to San Francisco and was a permanent presence in the North Beach neighborhood, where he supported artists and poets from the city and around the world. He was named a San Francisco Poet Laureate in 2006, although he supported Gavin Newsom’s opponent in the mayoral campaign in 2003. In 2007 he founded the International Poetry Festival and in 2009 became Poet in Residence at the San Francisco Public Library.
He died in his home just minutes before he was due to speak to an online meeting for the World Poetry Movement, an organization he helped found. To honor his memory, a procession through North Beach will take place on Saturday, October 2, 2021, starting at 12 noon in the Specs’ Bar (12 Adler Place / William Saroyan Place), where a communal altar will be built and with live Music is blessed. Attendees can then take a second line procession to Caffe Trieste (601 Vallejo St.) for music and poetry readings before walking up Grant Avenue to Live Worms Gallery (1345 Grant Ave.) to honor Hirschman. The event will be relocated to Washington Square Park (Columbus Avenue and Filbert Streets) for a formal program and memorial service, which is scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. and run through 4:00 p.m.
Friends and admirers of Hirschman are invited to bring items for the community altar. Masks and proof of COVID-19 vaccination are required for indoor specs, and most events are held outdoors for public health reasons.
The event is sponsored by the office of District 3 Supervisor Aaron Peskin. According to their press release, Hirshman’s main work The Arcanes comprises three volumes with 126 poems from 34 years. The World Poetry Movement supports a month-long call for “poetic actions” in October to commemorate Hirschman.
