MANONG ‘BENNY’S ALTARS’ EXHIBIT BARES DIASPORA’S ROOTS

November 25, 2019
Wilfred Galila, Inquirer.net

SAN FRANCISCO – Benny Gallo was a well-dressed gentleman who belonged to the manong (older brother or elder) generation. The manongs were the first wave of Filipino immigrants who came to the United States, starting in 1906 with the importation of Filipino farm laborers by the Hawaiian Sugar Planters’ Association. Those who came in the 1920s and 30s and worked as seasonal migrant workers in farms in the west coast and salmon canneries in Alaska.

Many of the manongs came to what was then Manilatown on Kearny Street, a five-block district from Bush Street to Jackson Street of Filipino residences and businesses. The encroachment of the Financial District brought about by the urban renewal and redevelopment movement in the mid-‘60s led to the destruction of Manilatown, including the International Hotel where many of the manongs lived. [more]