This past March, short story author Deborah Eisenberg launched a spirited debate about the nature of free expression following the announcement that the PEN America Center would give its annual Freedom of Expression Courage Award to Charlie Hebdo. Eisenberg brings the same politically impassioned thought to her stories, particularly those in the 1992 collection Under the 82nd Airborne. Read more >>> Deborah Eisenberg reads at 7 p.m. at the Folger Shakespeare Library, 201 East Capitol St. SE. $25. (202) 898-9063. penfaulkner.org. (Caroline Jones)

EAT THIS

Black Squirrel is getting into the holiday spirit with an event tonight and Saturday beginning at 5 p.m. that will feature Christmas ales and cookies. The Adams Morgan bar will serve 15 different Christmas beers, including The Brewer’s Art St. Festivus Holiday Ale and Evil Twin Christmas Eve At A New York City Hotel Room. Two burger specials will be offered: the XXXmas burger with a sausage patty, dressing, bacon, and cranberry aioli, as well as the Holy Cheesemas double decker burger with beer cheese sauce, plus cookies for everyone who’s been nice this year. The Black Squirrel, 2427 18th St. NW. (202) 232-1011. BlackSquirrelDC.com. (Jessica Sidman)

OH AND ALSO

Friday: Head to MLK Library for the D.C. Public Library’s Labs’ Holiday Happy Hour. Guests can sip cocktails and create gifts for themselves or others on the library’s 3-D printers. 5:30 p.m. at 901 G St. NW. $35.

Friday: Folk rock band Kingsley Flood arrives at U Street Music Hall to perform in support of its latest EP, The Good Fight, the band’s third release of 2015. 7 p.m. at 1115 U St. NW. $16.

Friday: Innov Gnawa, a traditional Moroccan band based in New York, heads south for an intimate show as part of the Hill Center’s Global Sounds on the Hill series. Find more details on Facebook. 7 p.m. at 921 Pennsylvania Ave. SE. $12–$15.

Saturday: If the National Christmas Tree Lighting is my version of holiday hell (nothing says “Christmas cheer” like a competitive ticket lottery and Fall Out Boy!) then the Scottish Christmas Walk Parade in Old Town Alexandria must be heaven—where “Scotland the Brave” is always playing and Scottish terriers are wearing sweaters. The parade, now in its 45th year, features clans displaying their tartans and crests, Darth Vader in a kilt, pups wearing plaid, and bagpipers playing in the streets and town square. Read more >>> The parade begins at 11 a.m. at St. Asaph and Wolfe streets, Alexandria. Free. (703) 549-0111. campagnacenter.org/scottishwalkweekend. (Sarah Anne Hughes)

Saturday: The second annual Magnificent Intentions Music Festival arrives at DC9 this evening, featuring performances by local rock acts Sara Curtin, Louis Weeks, and Alex Vans. 6:15 p.m. at 1940 9th St. NW. $15–$18.

Saturday: Sweet Spot Aerial Productions welcomes the holiday season with another high-flying performance at Atlas Performing Arts Center. 4 p.m. at 1333 H St. NE. $15–$25.

Sunday: A 1990s hip-hop radio program that aired on Columbia University’s WKCR in the wee hours on Fridays was “the most important show in the world,” says rapper Nas. In the documentary Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives, that claim is supported by noting how, in that largely pre-Internet era, DJs Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Garcia used their show to first showcase then-unsigned, now-iconic artists like Notorious B.I.G., Wu-Tang Clan, and a little-known performer called Jay Z. Read more >>> The film shows at 6 p.m. at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater, 2700 F St. NW. Free. 9202) 467-4600. kennedy-center.org. (Steve Kiviat)

Sunday: Hardcore band Terror closes out the weekend with a show at Rock & Roll Hotel featuring Code Orange, Take Offense, Incendiary, and Malfunction. 7 p.m. at 1353 H St. NE. $17.

Sunday: The Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington puts its own twist on classic Christmas carols and holiday songs with its “Rewrapped” show at the Lincoln Theatre. 3 p.m. at 1201 U St. NW. $25–$63.

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