Ferlinghetti Day: Readers honor famous SF poet and founder of City Lights Books with annual walk

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- More than five years after his death, one of the Bay Area's most famous poets was honored Tuesday as readers and admirers gathered across San Francisco to celebrate the birthday of Lawrence Ferlinghetti.

From dawn until dusk, participants marked Ferlinghetti Day with public readings of his poetry at locations tied to his life and work.

Ferlinghetti was an author, poet and the founder of City Lights Books, long known as a defender of free speech. The annual celebration was founded nine years ago, when Ferlinghetti was 98 years old. He lived to be 101.

MORE: SF City Lights Booksellers founder, poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti dies at 101

"We're doing this every year, every March 24, to honor Lawrence Ferlinghetti, and also, by extension, City Lights bookstore, which is a true beacon of publishing voices that need to be heard," said Chris Buck, the founder of Ferlinghetti Day.

One of the stops this year was Jackson Playground in Potrero Hill, where Buck read Ferlinghetti's poem "Baseball Canto." The park has a personal connection to the poet.

"This park is referenced in some of his poetry, and there's even footage of him reading poems here right with this same exact backstop behind me," Buck said.

Jackson Playground was one of several locations visited during the annual Ferlinghetti Day Walkabout.

At each stop, a different reader shared Ferlinghetti's work, bringing his poems to life in places that reflect both his history and the city's.

Each location represented a meaningful part of Ferlinghetti's life and San Francisco's cultural history.

Buck said Ferlinghetti's influence extended well beyond literature. He noted that after the Loma Prieta earthquake, Ferlinghetti was among the strongest voices advocating for changes that helped shape the Embarcadero into the waterfront pedestrian hub it is today.

"The waterfront is really important for us because it was important to him. And water sea, sea voyages are a huge part of his poetry and his painting as well," Buck said. Buck said he hopes the annual celebration reminds people of Ferlinghetti's impact not just as a writer, but as a cultural figure and advocate. "This man who's so important to San Francisco, literary history, cultural history, A voice of San Francisco and freedom of speech," Buck said.

Ferlinghetti founded the iconic City Lights Books and remained a central figure in San Francisco's literary and cultural landscape for decades. Organizers say Ferlinghetti Day is intended to ensure his legacy continues to be shared, read and experienced throughout the city.