[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 155 (Friday, November 7, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2215]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


              TRIBUTE TO THE HONORABLE PHILLIP LEWIS SOTO

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ESTEBAN EDWARD TORRES

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, November 6, 1997

  Mr. TORRES. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to pay tribute to a great 
American who has passed on from the California sociopolitical scene. A 
true friend of mine who I shall miss after a long illness.
  Phil Soto was born on March 3, 1926 in the east LA neighborhood of 
Boyle Heights. During World War II, he served as a bombardier in the 
South Pacific, flying B-17's and B-29's. After the war, he helped found 
the GI Forum, a foundation that serves veterans of Mexican American 
heritage.
  In 1948, Phil married Nell Manuel Garcia and began a family. He 
started his career in the television repair business in the San Gabriel 
Valley community of La Puente, where he was active in little league and 
local civic issues. In 1956, Phil helped manage the city of La Puente 
city-hood campaign. In 1958 he was elected to the La Puente City 
Council where he served until 1962. He was a local campaign manager for 
the John F. Kennedy 1960 Presidential campaign.
  In the 1950's Phil Soto helped organize labor initiatives with the 
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the United Farm 
Workers, working closely with the late Caesar Chavez. One of the many 
accomplishments of Phil Soto was to petition the Attorney General to 
release Caesar Chavez after he was arrested and beaten by police during 
the union's early organizing days. When the Attorney General refused, 
Phil rode a bus to Delano, CA, and spent the night in jail with Mr. 
Chavez to guarantee his protection. On a later occasion, he spent 
another night in jail with Dolores Huerta, the current UFW president.
  In 1962, Phil was elected to the 50th District of the California 
Assembly; the first of two members of Latino heritage elected to serve 
in the assembly in the 20th century; the other being John Moreno.
  As a California Assemblyman, Phil Soto was a pioneer and role model 
for future Latino community leaders and elected officials. Through his 
dedication to the principles of the Democratic Party, he became a 
champion of the rights of farm workers and human rights. He also fought 
to improve the quality of life for all Californians through his support 
of public education, water projects, and other public works projects. 
Phil was the first of many leaders to help define the role of Latinos 
in modern California politics.
  In 1966, Governor Ronald Reagan's Republican sweep and Phil and 
Nell's opposition to the growing war in Vietnam left Phil without an 
assembly seat. But the call to public service remained strong and Phil 
accepted an appointment from President Johnson to help establish 
economic development and job training programs in east Los Angeles. 
During this time, he implemented the programs he had fought for during 
his legislative career.
  In 1968, Phil Soto's commitment to labor, jobs and his advocacy for 
Latino rights and equality was recognized by the Robert Kennedy 
Presidential primary campaign in California and he was asked to serve 
as a key adviser.
  In his later years, Phil played the role of teacher, role model, and 
senior adviser for a new generation of Latino leaders and elected 
officials. One early race was the unsuccessful city election in east 
Los Angeles, which, had it been successful, would have resulted in the 
election of his wife Nell and future State Senator Richard Polanco to 
the east Los Angeles City Council. In 1988, he successfully helped 
elect his wife to the Pomona City Council and secure an appointment to 
the board of directors of the air quality management district.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues assembled here to join with me in 
paying condolences to his survivors, Nell his wife and a Pomona City 
Council member, sons; Phil IV, Robert, Michael, Patrick, Tom, and 
daughter Anna.

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