California Story Fund
Bill Sorro: His Life and Activism
Manilatown Heritage Foundation
San Francisco
Project Director: Robynn Takayama
This oral history project and exhibit will honor the life of Bill Sorros, one of the most revered members of San Francisco’s Filipino community.
The project will trace Bill’s life from the time his father was arrested and jailed for miscegenation for marrying his Scottish mother through his early life growing up in the Fillmore District, to his ongoing work as a housing and community advocate.
“Bill is perhaps best known for his perseverance in the fight for the International Hotel,” said Project Director Robynn Takayama.
The I hotel, as it was called, was located in the heart of San Francisco’s historic Manilatown in the Kearny/Jackson Street area. “Bill was a founding member of the I-Hotel Tenants Union, which fought for years against the evictions” of the mostly senior Filipino and Chinese tenants, who finally lost their homes in 1977,” Takayama said. “Bill was also a leader in efforts to preserve the historic Manilatown community and to secure the former I-Hotel site for low-income housing.”
Through the years Bill has continued his tireless work as housing advocate and community leader on behalf of civil rights for Filipinos and others. Though retired, Bill sits on the board of numerous advocacy organizations, including the Manilatown Heritage Foundation, which now manages the new cultural center in the rebuilt International Hotel.
After decades of work, in 2005 this father of four and grandfather of ten was honored with a Local Hero Award in 2005 By San Francisco public television station KQED.
A gallery exhibition featuring the interviews, photographs and other historical material will take place in August 2007. A community forum is planned in connection with the exhibit.