Edward Ross Roybal (February 10, 1916 – October 24, 2005) was an American politician. A Democrat, he was a member of the Los Angeles City Council from 1949 to 1962 and of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1963 to 1993.
Biography
Roybal was born on February 10, 1916, into a Mexican family that traced its roots in Albuquerque, New Mexico back hundreds of years, to the Roybals who settled the area before the founding of Santa Fe. In 1922, a railroad strike prevented his father from being able to work, and Roybal, age 6, was brought with his family to the East Los Angeles neighborhood of Boyle Heights, where he graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1934. After graduation, Roybal joined the Civilian Conservation Corps. After serving in the CCC, Roybal studied business at UCLA and law at Southwestern Law School.
He served a stint in the Army, where he worked as an accountant for an infantry unit.
On January 8, 2001, he was presented with the Presidential Citizens Medal by President Bill Clinton.
Roybal died of respiratory failure complicated by pneumonia at the age of 89 on October 24, 2005, at Huntington Hospital in Pasadena. He was survived by his wife, Lucille, and children Lucille Roybal-Allard, Lillian Roybal-Rose and Edward Roybal Jr. A funeral service was held at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, and burial was at Calvary Cemetery, East Los Angeles.
Public service
Community
In 1942, Roybal began work as a public health educator with the California Tuberculosis Association. Upon returning home, he began work as director of health education for the Los Angeles County Tuberculosis and Health Association, a position he held until 1949. In 1949, Roybal teamed with local organizer Fred Ross and Anthony "Tony" P Rios from a group of people who had supported his earlier campaign to form the Community Service Organization (CSO), which tied together a variety of religious, political, and organized labor groups to fight local discrimination. The organization, which organized get-out-the-vote drives, did not explicitly endorse candidates, but Roybal's presence as president of the organization and the personal endorsements of many of its members helped form a groundswell of support that contributed to Roybal's victory. In 1960 Roybal helped organize the Mexican American Political Association (MAPA) and served as its first president from 1960 to 1962.
After retiring from Congress, Roybal founded the Lucille and Edward R. Roybal Foundation, which awards scholarships to Latino students pursuing careers in the field of health. Edward R. Roybal lived the rest of his life in Pasadena, California as one of the deans of local and national politics, endorsing several candidates in elections throughout the region.
City Council
Elections
In 1947, Roybal ran to fill the Los Angeles City Council District 9 seat held by Parley Parker Christensen. The district, which included Boyle Heights, Bunker Hill, Civic Center, Chinatown, Little Tokyo, and the Central Avenue corridor, was then 45% White, 34% Latino, 15% African American, and 6% "other" residents. Roybal placed third in a field of five. In 1949, though, he defeated Christensen in the runoff election, for a two-year term. He was reelected in every vote thereafter until leaving office in 1962 after 13 years, He was president pro tempore in his last term.
Positions
Roybal was noted as "often the spokesman for minority groups" in the City Council and "recognized leader of East Side minority groups." He was also seen as a "consistent supporter" of subsidized low-cost public housing.
Other positions taken:
Communists, 1950. Roybal cast the sole negative vote against an ordinance that required "Communists and other subversives" to register with the police. He told the council he believed he was "signing a political death warrant" with his vote, adding that the law "places every citizen and organization . . . at the mercy of any biased crackpot who may decide to report the matter to the Police Department as subversive."
Juveniles, 1950. The council adopted a motion by Don A. Allen asking the Police Department what was being done to enforce curfew laws. Allen said it was his opinion that if policemen were "equipped with a good old-fashioned hair brush, which could be applied to some of these kids," there might be a lessening of juvenile crime. But Roybal disagreed, noting that most of the "hoodlums" were over 21 and recommending closer cooperation by the police with agencies "dealing with youth problems."
Rabies, 1953. He and his public health and welfare committee supported proposed legislation requiring all dogs to be vaccinated against rabies.