Basil Whitener | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNorth Carolina | |
| In office January 3, 1957 – January 3, 1969 | |
| Preceded by | Woodrow W. Jones |
| Succeeded by | Jim Broyhill |
| Constituency |
|
| Member of theNorth Carolina House of RepresentativesfromGaston County | |
| In office November 5, 1940 – November 3, 1942 Serving with Carl Rudisill | |
| Preceded by | R. Gregg Cherry |
| Succeeded by | Stephen B. Dolley |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Basil Lee Whitener (1915-05-14)May 14, 1915 |
| Died | March 20, 1989(1989-03-20) (aged 73) Gastonia, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Alma mater | Rutherford College University of South Carolina Duke University Law School |
| Occupation |
|
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1942–1945 |
| Rank | Lieutenant |
| Battles/wars | |
Basil Lee Whitener (May 14, 1915 – March 20, 1989) was aDemocraticU.S. Representative fromNorth Carolina between 1957 and 1969.
Whitener was born inYork County, South Carolina on May 14, 1915, and was educated in the public schools ofGaston County, North Carolina. He graduated fromLowell High School in 1931 and fromRutherford College in 1933, attending theUniversity of South Carolina from 1933 to 1935 and graduating fromDuke University Law School in 1937. He was admitted to the North Carolina bar in 1937 and commenced practice of law inGastonia, North Carolina.
In 1940, Whitener was elected to theNorth Carolina House of Representatives and was renominated in 1942 but resigned to enter theUnited States Navy. He served as a gunnery officer until November 1945, leaving with a rank of lieutenant. Whitener was appointed solicitor, fourteenth solicitorial district, in January 1946 and elected in November 1946, reelected in 1950 and 1954, and served until December 31, 1956. In 1948, he was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention.
Whitener was elected as aDemocrat to theEighty-fifth and to the five succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1957 – January 3, 1969); he was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1968 to theNinety-first Congress and an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1970 to theNinety-second Congress. He resumed the practice of law.
In 1966, Whitener unsuccessfully introduced an amendment to a bill to make Title VI of theCivil Rights Act of 1964 inoperative.[1]
Whitener was a resident ofGastonia, North Carolina until his death there on March 20, 1989.
On August 9, the twelfth day of debate in the full House on the civil rights bill, a North Carolina congressman by the apt name of Basil Whitener introduced an amendment to moot Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act outright (Whitener had earlier whined of an amendment offering relief for Negroes injured or intimidated while voting, "Why cannot a person who is injured or intimidated be a white person for once?").
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromNorth Carolina's 11th congressional district January 3, 1957 – January 3, 1969 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromNorth Carolina's 10th congressional district January 3, 1963 – January 3, 1969 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
