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Fatherhood Memories,
Lasting Bonds!
I
have to admit when
LATINA Style
asked me to write this
column about my father,
the late Congressman
Edward R. Roybal, for
Father’s Day, I paused
for a moment. My
hesitation wasn’t
because I lack the words
to describe what my
father meant to me.
Rather, like most
children who have lost a
loving and devoted
parent, my many
wonderful memories of
him are tempered by the
fact that I simply miss
him so much.
However, anyone who knew
my father would be the
first to tell you that
he would not want anyone
in his family brooding
over his passing, when
so much remains to be
done. After all, the
legendary Latino leader
who pulled himself out
of poverty to become a
distinguished Member of
Congress for 30 years,
made his mark through
his tenacious drive to
always move forward. Now
that he is gone, I must
remind myself of this
and find solace too in
moving forward. Sharing
his story for Father’s
Day helps me, as his
daughter, to do just
that, and I thank LATINA
Style for the
opportunity.
My
father enjoyed a long
and accomplished
political career.
He started his work in
public service as a
bilingual health
educator. A pioneer in
the early 40s, he
traveled the state of
California with the
first tuberculosis X-ray
units to educate Latinos
about the dangers of
tuberculosis.
In
1949, he became the
first Latino in the 20th
Century elected to the
Los Angeles City Council.
His campaign and
subsequent elections
sowed the seeds that
inspired the Latino
political movement of
the 40s and the 50s in
East Los Angeles. |
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(1962 during the
late Congressman
Roybal’s first
campaign for
Congress) The
Roybal family
walking in
Hollenbeck Park
in Boyle Heights
in Los Angeles.
Left to right:
Lillian (sister);
Lucille Beserra
Roybal (mother);
the late
Congressman Ed
Roybal; Lucille;
and Ed (younger
brother).
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In
1962, when he became the
first Mexican American
from California to be
elected to the U.S.
House of Representatives,
he continued to empower
Latinos and was the key
founder of the
Congressional Hispanic
Caucus, the
Congressional Hispanic
Caucus Institute, and
the National Association
of Latino Elected
Officials, better known
today as NALEO. Upon
retirement, he founded
the Lucille and Edward
R. Roybal Foundation
which gives scholarships
to students majoring in
the field of health and
who are committed to
working in underserved
communities. These
organizations continue
to grow, working to
empower our elected
leadership, our youth
and our Latino
communities.
From his seat as one of
the thirteen cardinals
of the powerful House
Appropriations Committee,
he was a leader in our
fight for fair and just
immigration policy,
bilingual education, and
accessible and
affordable healthcare.
As
his many accomplishments
show, my father
dedicated his public
life to advocating on
behalf of the sick, the
elderly, and the
disadvantaged. On a
personal level, though,
especially through the
memories of his three
children, my father – or
“pop,” as we lovingly
called him – was so much
more.
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About
Congresswoman
Lucille Roybal-Allard:
A political
pioneer, in
1992,
Congresswoman
Lucille Roybal-Allard
became the first
Mexican-American
woman elected to
Congress. Before
that, she
represented the
56th Assembly
District of
California for
six years.
Congresswoman
Roybal-Allard
serves as a
Member of the
House
Appropriations
Committee, one
of the most
powerful and
distinguished
committees in
Congress. She is
the first Latina
in U.S. history
to be appointed
to the
Appropriations
Committee, which
controls the
purse strings of
the federal
government. The
congresswoman
serves on three
influential
subcommittees –
the Subcommittee
on Homeland
Security, the
Subcommittee on
Transportation,
Housing and
Urban
Development, and
Related Agencies
and the
Subcommittee on
Labor, Health
and Human
Services, and
Education.
Widely known and
respected on
Capitol Hill and
in her district
as a consensus
builder,
Congresswoman
Roybal-Allard
also served as
chair of the
California
Democratic
Congressional
Delegation in
1997 and 1998 –
the first woman
to serve in this
role.
Later, during
the 106th
Congress in 1999
and 2000, she
went on to serve
as the first
female Chair of
the
Congressional
Hispanic Caucus.
She was born and
raised in Boyle
Heights in Los
Angeles and is
the eldest
daughter of
Lucille Beserra
Roybal and the
late Congressman
Edward R. Roybal,
a Member of
Congress for 30
years. |
He
was a devoted husband.
He deeply loved our
mother – his wife of 65
years, Lucille Beserra
Roybal, whom we are
blessed to still have in
our lives. Always by my
father’s side, her hard
work and devotion was
the glue that held our
family together and
provided the strength
and support that helped
to make possible our
father’s many
accomplishments.
Together, my father and
mother always modeled
for us deep personal
integrity. They taught
us faith in God, the
value of family and
friends, and the
importance of giving
back to one’s community.
My
father taught us never
to give up. He often
reminded us that the
struggles and even the
victories were not about
him and our family. They
were about creating a
foundation of
opportunity for future
generations of Latinos
and other
disenfranchised
Americans and
communities.
On
this Father’s Day, while
we miss him very much, I
find comfort in knowing
that by continuing to
move forward, each of us
in our own way can
embrace and further his
great legacy, both as a
loving family man and as
a visionary and noble
leader.
By Congresswoman Lucille
Roybal-Allard (CA-34) |
