Title created by cataloger. Rolland Joseph 'Speedy' Curtis was born in Louisiana in 1922. After serving three years in the Marines during World War II, he and his wife, Gloria, relocated from New Orleans to Los Angeles in 1946. Curtis served four years with the Los Angeles Police Department, but resigned from the force in order to pursue both a Bachelor's and Master's degree from USC. He later became involved in city politics, as an associate of Sam Yorty, and later a field deputy to City Council members Billy Mills and Tom Bradley. He was briefly director of the Model Cities program in 1973. Rolland J. Curtis died in his home in 1979, the victim of a homicide. An affordable housing complex on Exposition Blvd. near Vermont Ave. was named in his honor in 1981, along with a nearby street and park.; James Roosevelt was born on December 23, 1907, the oldest son of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt. He was an American businessman, activist and Democratic Party politician. He received the Navy Cross for extraordinary heroism while serving as a Marine Corps officer during World War II. He served as a Secretary to President Roosevelt and in the United States House of Representatives. He died on August 13, 1991.; Edward Ross Roybal (1916-2005) was a member of the Los Angeles City Council (1949-1962) as well as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California (1963-1993). In 1947, Roybal ran to fill the Los Angeles City Council District 9 seat but was unsuccessful; that same year, he helped start the Community Service Organization (CSO), and became its first president and its primary spokesman. In 1949, Roybal mounted a second attempt for a city council seat and won the election, becoming the first Hispanic to serve on the Los Angeles city council since 1881, and one of the highest-ranking Latinos in California municipal government. In 1960, Roybal helped organize the Mexican American Political Association (MAPA) and served as its first president from 1960 to 1962. That same year, he ran for Congress, winning the election in the 25th District, becoming the first Latino Congressperson from California since 1879. During his terms in office, Roybal served on the Interior and Insular Affairs Committee, the Post Office Committee, the Foreign Affairs Committee, and the Veterans Affairs Committee. In 1971, he served on the House Appropriations Committee for more than two decades and authored a number of bills, many which were on behalf of veterans, the elderly, and Mexican-Americans. In 1976, he founded the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) and served as both president and treasurer, and later co-founded the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO). Roybal became chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Treasury, Postal Service, and General Government, and later, chairman of the Select Committee on Aging. In 1993, after thirty years in office, he retired from Congress. In 2001, he was presented with the Presidential Citizens Medal by President Bill Clinton. Sadly, in October 2005, he died of respiratory failure at the age of 89. Mr. Roybal was awarded a posthumous Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2014. Edward Ross Roybal was among the country’s most influential Hispanic politicians to date. A large group of demonstrators including both civic and religious leaders march north on Spring Street in Downtown Los Angeles in support of Civil Rights, though protesters can be seen covering all corners of the intersection. In the foreground, participants hold signs that read, "No Selma in L.A. Vote! April 6th"; "Don't let Selma happen in L.A. Vote April 6th" and "Stop another Selma in L.A. Vote April 6th." A CBS TV cameraman is visible (center, right) catching the moment as he walks amongst the marching crowd, which includes 30th District Representative Edward Roybal (center, black suit, between picket signs), and 26th District Representative James Roosevelt (on Roybal's left, glasses, smiling). Photograph circa 1965. See images 00128016; 00134154, and 00144913 through 00144920 for additional photos in this series.
Type
image
Format
1 negative : safety ; 10 x 13 cm. Photographic safety negatives
Roybal, Edward Ross,--1916-2005 Roosevelt, James,--1907-1991 KCBS-TV (Television station : Los Angeles, Calif.) African American men Men African American women Women Political activists Politicians City council members Legislators Civic leaders Clergy Civil rights demonstrations Civil rights leaders Civil rights movements Demonstrations Picketing Signs and signboards Television stations--Call signs Buildings Automobiles Pedestrians Crowds Walking Streets Los Angeles (Calif.)
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