Sidney R. Yates | |
|---|---|
 Yates in 1983 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's9th district | |
| In office January 3, 1965 – January 3, 1999 | |
| Preceded by | Edward R. Finnegan |
| Succeeded by | Jan Schakowsky |
| In office January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1963 | |
| Preceded by | Robert Twyman |
| Succeeded by | Edward R. Finnegan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1909-08-27)August 27, 1909 Chicago,Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | October 5, 2000(2000-10-05) (aged 91) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Resting place | Memorial Park Cemetery,Skokie, Illinois |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Adeline Holleb (1914–2002) |
| Children | Stephen R. Yates (1940–2000) |
| Alma mater | University of Chicago(B Ph, JD) |
| Profession | Attorney |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service | United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1944–1946 |
| Rank | Lieutenant |
| Unit | Judge Advocate General's Corps |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Yates on his support for substitute legislation concerning gas extractionroyalties Recorded November 3, 1987 | |
Sidney Richard Yates (August 27, 1909 – October 5, 2000) was an American attorney andDemocratic Partypolitician who represented thestate ofIllinois in theUnited States House of Representatives for twenty-nine terms from 1949 to 1963 and 1965 to 1999, one of the longest tenures in the history of the House. He was a staunch advocate for liberal causes and a long-time member of theHouse Appropriations Committee, where he became known for staunch U.S. support ofIsrael, and federal funding for parks, historical conservation, and the arts.
A native ofChicago, he graduated fromLake View High School in 1928. He received bachelor's (1931) and law (1933) degrees from theUniversity of Chicago, 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 intraction railroads for the Illinois Commerce Commission (1937–1940). DuringWorld War II, Yates served in theUnited States Navy for two years (1944–1946) as an attorney based inWashington, D.C.
In 1948, Yates was elected to Congress, and he served from 1949 to 1963. After an unsuccessful run againstEverett Dirksen for the United States Senate in1962, 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 HouseAppropriations Committee, where he became known for staunch U.S. support ofIsrael, 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) behindCharles Manly Stedman andIsaac 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 inSkokie, Illinois.
Yates was born in Chicago, Illinois, the youngest of six children ofLithuanian Jewish immigrants Louis and Ida Yates.[1] He grew up in Chicago and was an office boy atVariety's Chicago office during the 1920s.[2] He graduated from theUniversity of Chicago in 1931 with aBachelor of Philosophy degree[3] and received aJuris Doctor from theUniversity of Chicago Law School in 1933.[4] While in college, Yates joined thePi Lambda Phi fraternity.[5] He also played basketball, and was selected forAll Big Ten honors.[6] In the mid-1930s, he played semiprofessional basketball and practiced law.[7] Yates was an attorney for the Illinois state bank receiver from 1935 to 1937.[8] From 1937 to 1940 he was an assistant state attorney general attached to the Illinois Commerce Commission as a traction attorney.[8][a] He served in theUnited States Navy duringWorld War II, assigned as an attorney for the Bureau of Ships in Washington, DC.[8]
From 1949 to 1963 and 1965 to 1999, Yates served in theHouse of Representatives as aDemocrat. 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 includedEvanston,Des Plaines,Glenview,Rosemont andSkokie.
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 theirright 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 orswitchblade 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."[10][11][12][13] The ban on switchblade knives was eventually enacted into law as the Switchblade Knife Act of 1958.[12] 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.[10][12][14] 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.[15]
Yates was an unsuccessful candidate for theUnited States Senate in 1962 against Republican incumbent andSenate Minority LeaderEverett Dirksen. He briefly served at theUnited Nations before returning to the House after the 1964 election. Fellow DemocratEdward 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 theAppropriations Committee throughout his career and chaired the Interior Subcommittee from 1975 to 1995. On this committee he supported environmental programs and theNational Endowment for the Arts.
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 forIsrael. He worked hand-in-hand with his chief of staff,Mary Bain, to preserve federal funding for the arts and for Natural Heritage Preservation programs, and to establish theU.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
In 1993, he was presented with thePresidential Citizens Medal by PresidentClinton and in 1997 he received theFour Freedoms Award for Freedom of Speech[16] In 1999, the Auditors Building inWashington, DC, was renamed theSidney Yates Building in his honor.[17]
He is the longest-serving member ever of the United States House of Representatives from the state ofIllinois.[18] He holds the record as the10th 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.
Yates died inWashington, D.C., on October 5, 2000. He was buried at Memorial Park Cemetery inSkokie, Illinois.
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 forBob Hope,Bing Crosby andMartha Raye.[2]
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by W. Richard Stengel | Democratic nominee forU.S. Senator fromIllinois (Class 3) 1962 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's 9th congressional district January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1963 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromIllinois's 9th congressional district January 3, 1965 – January 3, 1999 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
