Sidney R. Yates
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Sidney Richard Yates (August 27, 1909 – October 5, 2000) was an American
politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
from the state of
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
. A native of
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
, he graduated from Lake View High School in 1928. He received bachelor's (1931) and law (1933) degrees from the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
, was admitted to the bar, and practiced law in Chicago. In addition to working as an attorney, Yates also played semiprofessional basketball in the 1930s. He gained his initial experience in government as an attorney for the state bank receiver (1935-1937), and an assistant state attorney general specializing in traction railroads for the Illinois Commerce Commission (1937-1940). During
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Yates served in the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
for two years (1944-1946) as an attorney based in
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
In 1948, Yates was elected to Congress, and he served from 1949 to 1963. After an unsuccessful run against Everett Dirksen for the United States Senate in
1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wors ...
, in 1964 Yates was again elected to the House. He served from 1965 to 1999, and did not run for reelection in 1998. He was a longtime member of the House Appropriations Committee, where he became known for staunch U.S. support of
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, and federal funding for parks, historical conservation, and the arts. Yates was also an advocate for several liberal causes, including opposition to discrimination based on age. At the time he concluded his service, he was third oldest person to ever serve in the House (age 89) behind
Charles Manly Stedman Charles Manly Stedman (January 29, 1841 – September 23, 1930) was a politician and lawyer from North Carolina. Biography Born in Pittsboro, North Carolina, Stedman moved to Fayetteville, North Carolina with his parents in 1853 where he ...
and Isaac R. Sherwood, and one of the longest-tenured members in the history of Congress (total House service of 48 years). Yates died in Washington in 2000. He was buried at Memorial Park Cemetery in
Skokie, Illinois Skokie (; formerly Niles Center) is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, neighboring the City of Chicago's northern border. Its population, according to the 2020 census, was 67,824. Skokie lies approximately north of Chicago's do ...
.


Early life

Yates was born in Chicago, Illinois, the youngest of six children of
Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
n Jewish immigrants Louis and Ida Yates. He grew up in Chicago and was an office boy at '' Variety'' Chicago office during the 1920s. He graduated from the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
in 1931 with a Bachelor of Philosophy degree and received a
Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
from the
University of Chicago Law School The University of Chicago Law School is the law school of the University of Chicago, a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It is consistently ranked among the best and most prestigious law schools in the world, and has many dist ...
in 1933. While in college, Yates joined the Pi Lambda Phi fraternity. He also played basketball, and was selected for All Big Ten honors. In the mid-1930s, he played semiprofessional basketball and practiced law. Yates was an attorney for the Illinois state bank receiver from 1935 to 1937. From 1937 to 1940 he was an assistant state attorney general attached to the Illinois Commerce Commission as a traction attorney. He served in the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, assigned as an attorney for the Bureau of Ships in Washington, DC.


Career in Congress

From 1949 to 1963 and 1965 to 1999, Yates served in the House of Representatives as a
Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
. Although the boundaries of his district changed over the years, it was always anchored in the Chicago lakefront. From the 1970s onward, Chicago's declining population resulted in the district spilling into the northern suburbs. By the time he retired, his district also included Evanston,
Des Plaines Des Plaines is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 60,675. The city is a suburb of Chicago and is located just north of O'Hare International Airport. It is situated on and is named after the ...
, Glenview, Rosemont and Skokie. Yates was one of the first congressmen to speak out against age discrimination, arguing in 1951 that mandatory retirement of workers was wrong and deprived older people of their ''right to lead a proud, productive and independent life.'' During the late 1950s, after a series of lurid magazine articles and Hollywood films helped to sensationalize youth gangs and violence, Yates called for legislation to ban automatic-opening or switchblade knives, melodramatically proclaiming that "Vicious fantasies of omnipotence, idolatry...barbaric and sadistic atrocities, and monstrous violations of accepted values spring from the cult of the weapon, and the switchblade knife is included in this. Minus switchblade knives and the distorted feeling of power they beget—power that is swaggering, reckless, and itching to express itself in violence—our delinquent adolescents would be shorn of one of their most potent means of incitement to crime."Levine, Bernard R.,
The Switchblade Menace
', OKCA Newsletter (1993)
Switchblade Knives: Hearing, House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, Eighty-fifth Congress, Minutes of the Second Session, April 17, 1958 The ban on switchblade knives was eventually enacted into law as the Switchblade Knife Act of 1958. Rep. Yates and other congressmen supporting the Switchblade Knife Act believed that by stopping the importation and interstate sales of automatic knives (effectively halting sales of new switchblades), the law would reduce youth gang violence by blocking access to what had become a symbolic weapon. However, while switchblade imports, domestic production, and sales to lawful owners soon ended, later legislative research demonstrated that youth gang violence rates had in fact rapidly increased, as gang members began using firearms instead of knives. Yates was an unsuccessful candidate for the
United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...
in 1962 against Republican incumbent and Senate Minority Leader Everett Dirksen. He briefly served at the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
before returning to the House after the 1964 election. Fellow Democrat Edward Finnegan won Yates' old seat after his former district was merged with the 9th, but Chicago machine bosses persuaded him to accept a circuit judgeship in return for letting Yates take his old seat back. Yates served on the Appropriations Committee throughout his career and chaired the Interior Subcommittee from 1975 to 1995. On this committee he supported environmental programs and the
National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...
. Yates remained on good terms with both liberal reformers and machine politicians in Chicago throughout his career. He also served on the Foreign Operations subcommittee and was a strong advocate of American support for
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
. He worked hand-in-hand with his chief of staff,
Mary Bain Mary Weiser Bain (born August 8, 1904 – October 26, 1972) was an American chess master. She was born in or near Ungvár, Kárpátalja, Hungary, which is now Uzhhorod, Zakarpattia oblast, Ukraine, into an assimilated Jewish family. Under the n ...
, to preserve federal funding for the arts and for Natural Heritage Preservation programs, and to establish the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. In 1993, he was presented with the
Presidential Citizens Medal The Presidential Citizens Medal is an award bestowed by the President of the United States. It is the second-highest civilian award in the United States and is second only to the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Established by executive order on Nov ...
by President
Clinton Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has frequently been used as a given ...
and in 1997 he received the
Four Freedoms Award The Four Freedoms Award is an annual award presented to "those men and women whose achievements have demonstrated a commitment to those principles which United States, US President of the United States, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt proclaime ...
for Freedom of Speech In 1999, the Auditors Building in
Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...
, was renamed the
Sidney Yates Building The Sidney R. Yates Federal Building, historically known as the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and later the Auditor's Building Complex, is a large historic federal building located on the National Mall and built between 1878–1880 that has hou ...
in his honor.Histories of the USDA Headquarters Complex Buildings
, U.S. Department of Agriculture Departmental Management website, accessed July 28, 2011
He is the longest-serving member ever of the United States House of Representatives from the state of
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
. He holds the record as the 10th longest-serving member in the history of the US Congress, and also has the longest tenure of all members whose time in Congress included a break in service.


Death and burial

Yates died in
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
on October 5, 2000. He was buried at Memorial Park Cemetery in
Skokie, Illinois Skokie (; formerly Niles Center) is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, neighboring the City of Chicago's northern border. Its population, according to the 2020 census, was 67,824. Skokie lies approximately north of Chicago's do ...
.


Family

Yates was married to Adeline Holleb (1914–2002) for 65 years. They were the parents of Stephen R. Yates (1940-2000), who served as an Illinois circuit court judge. His brother Charles was a talent agent for
Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with 5 ...
,
Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...
and Martha Raye.


See also

*
List of Jewish members of the United States Congress This is a list of Jewish members of the United States Congress. , there are 10 Jewish senators and 27 Jewish members of the House of Representatives serving in the United States Congress. Senate Elected to the Senate, but not seated House ...


Notes


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yates, Sidney R. 1909 births 2000 deaths 20th-century American politicians Jewish American military personnel United States Navy personnel of World War II American people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Illinois Jewish members of the United States House of Representatives Illinois lawyers Politicians from Chicago Presidential Citizens Medal recipients University of Chicago alumni Variety (magazine) people 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century American Jews