Bernard Healy (1856 – October 22, 1916) was a

Los Angeles City Council The Los Angeles City Council is the Legislature, lawmaking body for the Government of Los Angeles, city government of Los Angeles, California, the second largest city in the United States. It has 15 members who each represent the 15 city council ...

member who was known for his attempt in 1905 to legislate against landlords who refused to rent to families with children, for his support of paid holidays for city workers in the parks and streets departments, and for his large family.

Personal

Healy was born in

Wheeling, West Virginia Wheeling is a city in Ohio County, West Virginia, Ohio and Marshall County, West Virginia, Marshall counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The county seat of Ohio County, it lies along the Ohio River in the foothills of the Appalachian Mo ...

and was married in Arizona about 1880, becoming the father of eight to ten children, including a set of twins. He was a

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is an enlisted rank, enlisted leader, petty officer, or in some cases warrant officer, who does not hold a Commission (document), commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority b ...

in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

"during many of the uprisings along the frontier."

Government service

Healy was a

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

member between 1904 and 1909,''Chronological Record of Los Angeles City Officials 1850–1938,'' Los Angeles Municipal Reference Library, March 1938, reprinted 1946 when he was described as a "kindly, good-natured man of large family and patriotic impulses." The ''Los Angeles Herald'' said of him in 1907 that he was "the most picturesque character in the present council. He is known as "

Buttermilk Buttermilk is a fermented dairy drink. Traditionally, it was the liquid left behind after churning butter out of cultured cream. As most modern butter in Western countries is not made with cultured cream but uncultured sweet cream, most mode ...

Barney," as he is an

abstainer Abstentionism is the political practice of standing for election to a deliberative assembly while refusing to take up any seats won or otherwise participate in the assembly's business. Abstentionism differs from an election boycott in that abst ...

, is always clad in green and wears no

neckties A necktie, long tie, or simply a tie, is a cloth article of formal neckwear or office attire worn for decorative or symbolic purposes, resting under a folded shirt collar or knotted at the throat, and usually draped down the chest. On rare oc ...

.""Suggest Healy for Police Chief," ''Los Angeles Herald,'' December 1, 1907, page 5
/ref> He represented the Eighth Ward on the east side of the city, which the ''

Times Time is the continued sequence of existence and events, and a fundamental quantity of measuring systems. Time or times may also refer to: Temporal measurement * Time in physics, defined by its measurement * Time standard, civil time specificat ...

'' called "the

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

with the greatest percentages of the saloon vote," the newspaper noting that Healy "was an uncompromising Republican" in "the strongest Democratic ward in the city." In 1905, Healy was the author of a successful move in the

to give outdoor parks and streets employees half a day off on Saturdays and legal holidays, the same as employees who worked in the

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

. He also authored an

ordinance Ordinance may refer to: Law * Ordinance (Belgium), a law adopted by the Brussels Parliament or the Common Community Commission * Ordinance (India), a temporary law promulgated by the President of India on recommendation of the Union Cabinet * Em ...

, adopted unanimously, that made it unlawful to grant a saloon license anywhere within 600 feet of a public school building. In 1907 he introduced an

that would have made it a

misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...

for a

landlord A landlord is the owner of property such as a house, apartment, condominium, land, or real estate that is rented or leased to an individual or business, known as a tenant (also called a ''lessee'' or ''renter''). The term landlord appli ...

to refuse to rent to a family with children. He said: Healy's first attempt was derailed by the city attorney, who advised that it would probably be

unconstitutional In constitutional law, constitutionality is said to be the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution; "Webster On Line" the status of a law, a procedure, or an act's accordance with the laws or set forth in the applic ...

. The councilman then amended his proposal to instead simply set a higher license fee on landlords who bar children, an exclusionary practice, he said, that placed "a premium on

race suicide Race suicide was an alarmist Eugenics, eugenicist theory, coined by American sociologist Edward Alsworth Ross, Edward A. Ross around 1900 and promoted by, among others, Harry J. Haiselden. According to the American Eugenics Archive, "race suicid ...

, and I'm going to fight it.""Looking Out for Babies," ''Los Angeles Times,'' June 2, 1907, page II-1
/ref> The council approved the ordinance, but the city attorney again ruled the idea to be unconstitutional. On December 7, 1909, Los Angeles changed its voting for City Council members from individual

wards Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

to all-city voting, with the top nine candidates being elected. Healy took the eleventh spot and so left the council on December 10, 1909. Afterward, in an article examining what the outgoing City Council members would do since "they lost their salaries of $100 a month and perquisites," the ''Los Angeles Herald'' said that "Barney Healy's income . . . seems to have been spent freely. Healy's faults did not include niggardliness, and no tale of hard luck ever failed to reach his pocketbook." Healy ran for the council again in 1910 and was defeated. An unsuccessful effort was made to have the City Council appoint him as an officer in the street-cleaning department. In 1912 he was made a

bailiff A bailiff is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. There are different kinds, and their offices and scope of duties vary. Another official sometimes referred to as a '' ...

and

deputy sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is commonly ...

in a

Superior Court In common law systems, a superior court is a court of general jurisdiction over civil and criminal legal cases. A superior court is "superior" in relation to a court with limited jurisdiction (see small claims court), which is restricted to civil ...

at a salary of $100 a month."25 Years Ago Today," ''Los Angeles Herald-Express,'' March 15, 1937
/ref>

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Healy, Bernard Los Angeles City Council members California Republicans 1856 births 1916 deaths