By Nicole Gonzales

Residents and visitors filled Clement Street on a sunny Richmond District day to celebrate Chinese culture, heritage and art for the seasonal Autumn Moon celebration.

Held on Saturday, Sept. 9, between Seventh and 10th avenues, the festival brought together community members, vendors, organizations, government officials and entertainers.

“When we started seven years ago, our goal was really about bringing more culture out to the Richmond,” said District 19 Assemblymember Phil Ting. “There are so many families here that are already celebrating the autumn festival in their homes, we’re just trying to get them to be out on the streets to celebrate as a community.”

Ting helped found the festival seven years ago along with then-D1 Supervisor Sandra Lee Fewer, The Richmond Neighborhood Center and the Clement Street Merchants Association.

“I’m so happy to see so many folks out – not just from the Richmond but from other neighborhoods as well – really enjoying the weather, the community, the festival and the booths. It’s just wonderful to be out,” added Ting.

The Richmond festival featured a line-up of live musical performances, traditional folk dancing, Kung Fu demonstrations, contests and more.

Notably, this year’s festival hosted a bunny contest in which residents could bring their pet rabbits out to have audience members vote on “best in show.”

“Because this is the year of the rabbit, we are having a bunny contest. It’s definitely different and I’m curious to see how many folks bring their rabbits out,” said Ting.

“For people who live in the Richmond I hope it helps build a sense of community,” Ting said. “For folks who don’t know the Richmond area that well, this is a great chance to experience the incredible beauty and diversity we have in this part of the City. We have so many amazing restaurants and stores, too.”

The Autumn Moon Festival is typically celebrated in Chinese culture, as well as other Asian countries, such as Japan and Korea, and is known as a time for thanksgiving. It is held as a way to welcome great harvest and peace.

The sound of drumming filled the streets as traditional dragon dancers sported bright and colorful costumes of intricate design on the event’s main stage. Dating back to 206 BCE, the dragon dance art form symbolizes harvest, prosperity and abundance for this time of year.

Centuries ago, dragon dancing was performed as a ceremony for worshiping ancestors and calling for rain. Now, the dance is done primarily as entertainment and often performed during Chinese New Year and other cultural celebrations.

Various merchants, organizations and nonprofits showed out to the festival to support the community. The Richmond Neighborhood Center, YMCA SF and the Asian Family Support Center, among others, were present.

“We’re here to support the community,” said Michael Chang, a youth librarian with the San Francisco Public Library.

Chang operates the library’s mobile outreach program, the Booksmobile. The vehicle acts as a portable library where residents are able to learn about various resources, check out books and sign up for a library card.

Parked near the festival exit, the Booksmobile also offered several boxes of free literature.

“We go to special events, after-school programs or senior centers to promote literacy and accessibility,” Chang said. “We were invited to be here to help spread knowledge in the community about what the library can offer them, and of course to encourage people to get library books.

“We have a selection of free books and magazines for people to look through or take home, a lot of them are written in Chinese or Mandarin,” added Chang.

Rebeca Muniz, of the Tat Wong Kung Fu Academy, spoke to festival goers about the school and its resources. Muniz has been training with the organization as a part of the black belt club.

“We’re just here trying to make sure the community knows about the culture, but also letting them know what skills and type of martial art it is we teach,” said Muniz. “We offer lessons that show folks how to defend themselves and let them learn something that brings them strength and confidence.”

Located on Clement Street, Tat Wong Kung Fu has been open for more than 30 years.

“For me, I wanted to know how to defend myself and I also just felt the need to be part of a community,” added Muniz. “We are out here educating folks on what we can teach them, like discipline, courage, bravery, kindness and humility.”