Xolo Books, founded by Oriana Peñaranda, is donating 20% of the proceeds from its used book sales this month to the DC nonprofit Serve Your City. (Photo courtesy of Oriana Peñaranda/Xolo Books)

The DC Lineup for this weekend: love, Lunar New Year and local tributes

By Jennifer Anne Mitchell On Feb 12, 2021 Last updated Feb 16, 2021

This weekend’s Lineup includes numerous Valentine’s Day and Lunar New Year celebrations along with events centered on Black History Month and the local arts scene.

The weather for the next few days, Feb. 12‐14, will be mostly cloudy, with a light wintry mix on Saturday that will turn into light freezing rain in the evening, followed by intermittent rain throughout Sunday. Temperatures will range from 28 to 40 degrees, according to the forecast.

The Memorial Foundation will host a food distribution event Saturday morning at the site of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on the National Mall. (Photo by Gediyon Kifle courtesy of the Memorial Foundation)

1. Community: The Memorial Foundation, the DC-based organization that built the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, is hosting A Day of Love: Food Box Distribution on Saturday at the memorial site on the corner of Independence Avenue and West Basin Drive SW. Containers of food will be distributed from 9‐11 a.m. (or as long as supplies last), and you must register online to receive a box. Each car is limited to one box, which feeds a family of four. Attendees are asked to wear masks and remain in their cars when picking up the food.

2. Literature: Xolo Books is an online bookshop run by Oriana Peñaranda, a Venezuelan immigrant who lives in the DC area. She says on her website that she founded Xolo to “help people decolonize their reading habits and support BIPOC stories so diversity can become prominent.” This Black History Month, Xolo is donating 20% of its used book sales to Serve Your City, a nonprofit that enriches the lives of Black and brown youth and families in the District by providing education, health and advocacy services and delivering food and supplies. The group also partners with Ward 6 Mutual Aid to bring essential care to the community.

3. Community: The DC Office of Planning is seeking input on its Commemorative Works Program, which seeks to honor the District’s local history. Members of the public are invited to take a 5-minute survey to give suggestions of people, places, ideas or events to honor with a monument or memorial in the District. Organizations are asked to send in an application to submit a proposal or offer to sponsor a commemorative work. Additionally, all are welcome to attend an online Commemorative Works location strategy town hall meeting on Thursday, Feb. 18, at 6 p.m. to discuss potential locations for new monuments and memorials. The Office of Planning has identified five preferred sites in each ward: one that would honor an important national event, one that would honor an important DC event and three that would honor events that are meaningful to the immediate neighborhood. Registration is open online.

4. History: The DC Public Library is highlighting events in local history that connect to the Lunar New Year — and the upcoming Year of the Ox — with Celebrating the Lunar New Year: A Parade of Community Memories. Saturday’s program starts at 2 p.m. with a presentation by the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association about Lunar New Year parades dating back to the 1970s, followed by a talk with the 1882 Foundation about what this holiday means to the District’s Chinatown community. At 3 p.m., attendees will be invited to share their own memories on a virtual community memory board. The final event at 3:15 p.m. is a discussion about the Asian American Context Study, placemaking and change in Chinatown, as highlighted in a video produced by the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum’s A Right to the City exhibition staff. The entire day of events will be broadcast on the DC Public Library’s Facebook and YouTube pages. Registration is free and open online.

5. History: The National Council of Negro Women (NCNW) — headquartered in the District and established in 1935 by Mary McLeod Bethune — leads, advocates for and empowers Black women, their families and their communities. NCNW’s Washington section is hosting a free oral history event, Monument or Movement — Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, which will share the stories of the women who started the local chapter in 1943. These leaders will explain what life was like for Black women in the DC area during a period of societal change. The online program is on Sunday from 2‐5 p.m. Denise Rolark Barnes, CEO and publisher of The Washington Informer, will moderate. A link to the discussion will be posted on the Eventbrite listing on the day of the event.

6. Nature: The Friends of the National Arboretum group is presenting Valentine’s Weekend Forest Bathing as a way to get outside while celebrating the holiday. Attendees will be guided through the U.S. National Arboretum, 3501 New York Ave. NE, by a nature and forest therapy guide. The program is inspired by the Japanese tradition of shinrin yoku (forest bathing), which provides health benefits. Meditation, options to walk or simply sit, and a modified tea ceremony with pre-packaged snacks are part of the experience. The forecast of potentially hazardous weather conditions led to the cancellation of tours on Saturday and Sunday morning, but tours are being offered in a two-hour slot on Sunday from 1‐3 p.m. Tickets cost $35, and attendance is limited to those 16 and older.

7. Theater: Story District is bringing its annual Valentine’s Day show to the virtual stage this Saturday. The program will be livestreamed from Union Stage and a link to watch it online will be sent to those who register beforehand. The streaming service, Mandolin, lets attendees chat with other fans for a community-building experience. The show starts at 8 p.m. Ticket prices range from $20‐$70, with options to pay more to attend an exclusive post-show Q&A and donate additional funds to support Story District and Union Stage.

8. Arts: This is the first weekend to view three brand-new virtual solo shows produced by Touchstone Gallery. The following member-artists are featured: Linda Bankerd, who paints colorful art that the gallery describes as “representational abstract”; Gale Wallar, who paints realistic scenes of places she has lived around the world, including DC; and Steve Wanna, who creates mixed-media work with vibrant colors and is inspired by science. Their exhibitions are up on the gallery’s website until March 10.

9. Culture: Though the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s main Lunar New Year Celebration is sold out, its Lunar New Year Family Zone still provides numerous ways to enjoy the holiday weekend and learn about Chinese culture. Videos of Chinese music are free to view, and the museum shares instructions for activities like creating paper lanterns and puppets. … The Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery also provide digital activities to celebrate, like sending a Lunar New Year e-card.

10. Music: The finalists for DC’s 33-year-old music awards show, the Wammies, were just announced — and tickets are now on sale for the main virtual event on March 28. So this weekend might be a good time to reserve your spot. The program includes a virtual red carpet with interviews with the finalists, pre-show networking and a vendor expo, as well as an after-party. Local musicians Kayla Waters (jazz), Iza Flo (funk), Elizabeth II (rock), Josanne Francis and Chao Tian (world music) and Noochie (rap) are slated to perform. Harrisonburg, Virginia-based Teddy Chipouras (folk) and DC dancer Crazy Legz, who was born and raised in Southeast, are also on the schedule. General virtual admission costs $10 and VIP virtual admission costs $20.