Bernie Hansen
Encyclopedia
Bernie Hansen was a longtime Chicago
alderman, serving on the Chicago City Council
from 1983 to 2002, when he retired as alderman of the 44th Ward citing health reasons. He is a Democrat.
Hansen was appointed to the Council when the incumbent alderman, John Merlo, unexpectedly resigned. In 1987 he defeated Dr. Ron Sable, a liberal gay activist, by a 52% to 47% margin in the race for 44th Ward alderman. It was a hard-fought campaign in the city's 44th Ward, which at the time was the heart of the city's gay community. Sable ran against Hansen again in 1991, but Hansen prevailed again, 65% to 35%.
From 1994 to 2000, he served as one of four U.S.
commissioners to the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, a presidential
appointment to a bilateral
treaty organization with Canada
responsible for fisheries
management research and recommendations and for sea lamprey
control for the Great Lakes
fisheries. For part of that time, he chaired the commission.
He sponsored or co-sponsored several human rights
ordinance
s, including the Human Rights Ordinance expanding protection against discrimination
in housing
, employment
, public accommodations, and credit
to gay
males, lesbian
s, and persons with disabilities
, an ordinance to assist victims of hate crime
s, and a 1997 ordinance Hansen introduced to extend health-care benefits to the domestic partners
of gay and lesbian city employees. Thomas M. Tunney
, his successor as 44th Ward alderman whom Hansen had "hand-picked", became Chicago's first openly gay alderman.
Hansen was also an active proponent of environmentalist
measures, including recycling
programs and the extension of Chicago's moratorium against the creation of new landfill
s.
Some residents of the Lakeview community voiced concern that Hansen was more concerned with building expensive condos and co-ops, then re-building the neighborhood with affordable housing during his tenure.
He serves on the board of many community councils as well as fund raising organizations, including the John Merlo Sports Program.
John Merlo was the son of Mike Merlo
leader of the Unione Siciliana during the 1920s. Mike Merlo
had such complete control of the Organized Crime activities in Chicago, that upon his death in 1924, a war between north side gangs against Johnny Torrio
(with underling) Al Capone
at his side, instantly erupted. The war lasted 4 bloody years and included the St. Valentines Day Massacre.
After his retirement from the city council, he continued to serve as Democratic committeeman from the 44th Ward, ultimately handing over the title to Alderman Tom Tunney. John Merlo held the position from 1969-92.
Hansen made an attempt to be a Democratic Congressional Candidate for Illinois' 5th District in 2002, but when the Democratic National Committee
backed Clinton Administration phenom Rahm Emanuel
in the race, Hansen withdrew and soon after resigned from the 44th Ward Aldermanic seat.
He is married to Annette and has two sons, Paul and David. He has two grandchildren. He attended the University of Chicago
and has residences in both Chicago and Arizona
. He is a longtime Cubs
fan and avid golfer.
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
alderman, serving on the Chicago City Council
Chicago City Council
The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 aldermen elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms...
from 1983 to 2002, when he retired as alderman of the 44th Ward citing health reasons. He is a Democrat.
Hansen was appointed to the Council when the incumbent alderman, John Merlo, unexpectedly resigned. In 1987 he defeated Dr. Ron Sable, a liberal gay activist, by a 52% to 47% margin in the race for 44th Ward alderman. It was a hard-fought campaign in the city's 44th Ward, which at the time was the heart of the city's gay community. Sable ran against Hansen again in 1991, but Hansen prevailed again, 65% to 35%.
From 1994 to 2000, he served as one of four U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
commissioners to the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, a presidential
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
appointment to a bilateral
Bilateralism
Bilateralism consists of the political, economic, or cultural relations between two sovereign states. For example, free trade agreements signed by two states are examples of bilateral treaties. It is in contrast to unilateralism or multilateralism, which refers to the conduct of diplomacy by a...
treaty organization with Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
responsible for fisheries
Fishery
Generally, a fishery is an entity engaged in raising or harvesting fish which is determined by some authority to be a fishery. According to the FAO, a fishery is typically defined in terms of the "people involved, species or type of fish, area of water or seabed, method of fishing, class of boats,...
management research and recommendations and for sea lamprey
Sea lamprey
The sea lamprey is a parasitic lamprey found on the Atlantic coasts of Europe and North America, in the western Mediterranean Sea, and in the Great Lakes. It is brown, gray, or black on its back and white or gray on the underside and can grow up to 90 cm long. Sea lampreys prey on a wide...
control for the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
fisheries. For part of that time, he chaired the commission.
He sponsored or co-sponsored several human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
ordinance
Local ordinance
A local ordinance is a law usually found in a municipal code.-United States:In the United States, these laws are enforced locally in addition to state law and federal law.-Japan:...
s, including the Human Rights Ordinance expanding protection against discrimination
Discrimination
Discrimination is the prejudicial treatment of an individual based on their membership in a certain group or category. It involves the actual behaviors towards groups such as excluding or restricting members of one group from opportunities that are available to another group. The term began to be...
in housing
House
A house is a building or structure that has the ability to be occupied for dwelling by human beings or other creatures. The term house includes many kinds of different dwellings ranging from rudimentary huts of nomadic tribes to free standing individual structures...
, employment
Employment
Employment is a contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. An employee may be defined as:- Employee :...
, public accommodations, and credit
Credit (finance)
Credit is the trust which allows one party to provide resources to another party where that second party does not reimburse the first party immediately , but instead arranges either to repay or return those resources at a later date. The resources provided may be financial Credit is the trust...
to gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
males, lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
s, and persons with disabilities
Disability
A disability may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these.Many people would rather be referred to as a person with a disability instead of handicapped...
, an ordinance to assist victims of hate crime
Hate crime
In crime and law, hate crimes occur when a perpetrator targets a victim because of his or her perceived membership in a certain social group, usually defined by racial group, religion, sexual orientation, disability, class, ethnicity, nationality, age, gender, gender identity, social status or...
s, and a 1997 ordinance Hansen introduced to extend health-care benefits to the domestic partners
Domestic partnership
A domestic partnership is a legal or personal relationship between two individuals who live together and share a common domestic life but are neither joined by marriage nor a civil union...
of gay and lesbian city employees. Thomas M. Tunney
Thomas M. Tunney
Thomas M. Tunney is an American entrepreneur and politician from Chicago, Illinois. Since 2003, he has served as an alderman on the Chicago City Council. He represents the prominent 44th Ward of the city, which includes major tourist destinations, Boystown and Wrigleyville...
, his successor as 44th Ward alderman whom Hansen had "hand-picked", became Chicago's first openly gay alderman.
Hansen was also an active proponent of environmentalist
Environmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
measures, including recycling
Recycling
Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
programs and the extension of Chicago's moratorium against the creation of new landfill
Landfill
A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
s.
Some residents of the Lakeview community voiced concern that Hansen was more concerned with building expensive condos and co-ops, then re-building the neighborhood with affordable housing during his tenure.
He serves on the board of many community councils as well as fund raising organizations, including the John Merlo Sports Program.
John Merlo was the son of Mike Merlo
Mike Merlo
Mike Merlo was a Chicago political figure associated in his later years with the Johnny Torrio-Al Capone organization. As head of the Unione Siciliana fraternal group, Merlo wielded considerable influence both in Chicago's Democratic Party politics and also within Chicago's criminal underworld...
leader of the Unione Siciliana during the 1920s. Mike Merlo
Mike Merlo
Mike Merlo was a Chicago political figure associated in his later years with the Johnny Torrio-Al Capone organization. As head of the Unione Siciliana fraternal group, Merlo wielded considerable influence both in Chicago's Democratic Party politics and also within Chicago's criminal underworld...
had such complete control of the Organized Crime activities in Chicago, that upon his death in 1924, a war between north side gangs against Johnny Torrio
Johnny Torrio
John "Papa Johnny" Torrio , also known as "The Fox", was an Italian-American mobster who helped build the criminal empire known as the Chicago Outfit in the 1920s that was later inherited by his protege, Al Capone...
(with underling) Al Capone
Al Capone
Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone was an American gangster who led a Prohibition-era crime syndicate. The Chicago Outfit, which subsequently became known as the "Capones", was dedicated to smuggling and bootlegging liquor, and other illegal activities such as prostitution, in Chicago from the early...
at his side, instantly erupted. The war lasted 4 bloody years and included the St. Valentines Day Massacre.
After his retirement from the city council, he continued to serve as Democratic committeeman from the 44th Ward, ultimately handing over the title to Alderman Tom Tunney. John Merlo held the position from 1969-92.
Hansen made an attempt to be a Democratic Congressional Candidate for Illinois' 5th District in 2002, but when the Democratic National Committee
Democratic National Committee
The Democratic National Committee is the principal organization governing the United States Democratic Party on a day to day basis. While it is responsible for overseeing the process of writing a platform every four years, the DNC's central focus is on campaign and political activity in support...
backed Clinton Administration phenom Rahm Emanuel
Rahm Emanuel
Rahm Israel Emanuel is an American politician and the 55th and current Mayor of Chicago. He was formerly White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama...
in the race, Hansen withdrew and soon after resigned from the 44th Ward Aldermanic seat.
He is married to Annette and has two sons, Paul and David. He has two grandchildren. He attended the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
and has residences in both Chicago and Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. He is a longtime Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
fan and avid golfer.