The Past is Now: An Intertribal Panel on King Philip's War, Past and Present (Main/Virtual)
Is King Philip’s War really part of the past? Four Indigenous speakers tell us that it’s still deeply present.
People who are not Indigenous often think of Metacom’s Resistance – more commonly known as King Philip’s War – if they know of it - as part of a distant past. If we have read children’s stories of an idealized colonial life, or educated with traditional textbooks, we might think of the war as a single violent chapter in an otherwise quaint, albeit colorful, history, with colonial heroes bravely conquering their enemies.
Historical markers dotting the New England countryside, especially in Massachusetts, reinforce this idea: it was brutal, but the colonists emerged victorious, and in any event it was long ago – nothing to do with life today. For Indigenous communities, the past is not so easily left behind – and nor should it be for non-Indigenous people. We all live today with its aftermath. King Philip’s War continues to shape daily life, experience, and memory.
Panelists include:
Hartman Deetz, Mashpee Wampanoag
Brad Lopes, Aquinnah Wampanoag
Brittney Walley, Hassanamisco Nipmuc
Elizabeth Solomon, Massachusett at Ponkapoag, moderator
On the eve of the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, this panel invites audiences to grapple with a foundational war of Indigenous resistance on its 350th anniversary - and to see that it is not past, but deeply present, for us all.
CPL Presents: Yiyun Li (Main/Virtual)
Join the Cambridge Public Library in celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month by welcoming Yiyun Li, the author of the memoir Things in Nature Merely Grow, the winner of the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Memoir, as well as several award-winning novels, including The Book of Goose.
In addition to the Pulitzer Prize, Things in Nature Merely Grow was a finalist for both the National Book Award for Nonfiction and the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award as well as the recipient of the presitigious Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction.
After a reading from her work, Yiyun will appear in conversation with Grace Talusan, author of The Body Papers, winner of the Massachusetts Book Award for Nonfiction and the Restless Books Award for New Immigrant Writing.
This hybrid event is cosponsored by the Cambridge Public Library Foundation. Registration is required.
Cambridge Urban Forestry Division Celebrates 2024 Milestones
In 2024, the Urban Forestry Division of Cambridge Public Works planted 1,250 new trees and removed 5,000 square feet of pavement to create better planting conditions, enhancing the city's green infrastructure. The Division maintained a strong tree survival rate, with only 3.5% mortality for spring plantings, and expanded community engagement through the revamped Cambridge Urban Forest Friends newsletter, which saw over 105% subscriber growth. Residents can support the city's urban forest by becoming an Urban Forest Friend or subscribing to the newsletter.
CSBBN Black Business Month Celebration
The Community Development Department joins the Cambridge-Somerville Black Business Network (CSBBN)to celebrate of their 5 year anniversary and Black businesses in Cambridge.
XR Lab 101 (Main)- CANCELLED
Extended reality (XR) opens the door to worlds and experiences outside the everyday through virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality equipment. Test drive our Microsoft HoloLens augmented reality glasses, Structure Sensor 3D scanner, Merge headsets, and more. Registration is required.
You must complete Hive Safety Training before registering for this workshop.
Reel Reads Book Club (O'Connell)
Is it true the book is always better? Join our new book club at the O'Connell Branch to delve into this question! Each month we will read a book selection with a movie adaptation, and discuss the relationship between the two and the merits and/or drawbacks of each.
The Reel Reads book club will meet the first Tuesday evening of each month at the O'Connell Branch Library on 48 Sixth St.
For our inaugural meeting in May, we will be discussing Forrest Gump by Winston Groom, and the 1994 film of the same name.
How to get the print book and physical movie: Copies of the book and DVD are set aside at the O'Connell Branch. Click here for O'Connell Branch Hours
This book group meets in person at the O'Connell Branch. No registration is needed. Drop-ins welcome.
For more information contact the branch at 617-349-4019.
Interactive Equity and Inclusion Dashboard
Our goal is to have a diverse and competent workforce. We actively work to achieve equal opportunity and we undertake extraordinary efforts to recruit from protected classes who historically have been excluded from the workforce--whether from institutional patterns of discrimination, disadvantage, or exclusion.
Half Folds
Information about how to protect water quality.