Basil Lee Whitener (May 14, 1915 – March 20, 1989) was a Democratic

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

between 1957 and 1969. Whitener was born in

York County, South Carolina York County is a county on the north central border in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 282,090, making it the seventh-most populous county in the state. Its county seat is the city of York, and its ...

on May 14, 1915, and was educated in the public schools of

Gaston County, North Carolina Gaston County is a county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 227,943. The county seat is Gastonia. Dallas served as the original county seat from 1846 until 1911. Gaston County is included in the ...

. He graduated from Lowell High School in 1931 and from Rutherford College in 1933, attending the

University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina (USC, SC, or Carolina) is a Public university, public research university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1801 as South Carolina College, It is the flagship of the University of South Car ...

from 1933 to 1935 and graduating from

Duke University Law School The Duke University School of Law is the law school of Duke University, a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. One of Duke's 10 schools and colleges, the School of Law is a constituent academic unit that began in 1868 as the T ...

in 1937. He was admitted to the North Carolina bar in 1937 and commenced practice of law in

Gastonia, North Carolina Gastonia is the most populous city in and the county seat of Gaston County, North Carolina, United States. It is the second-largest satellite city of the Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte area, behind Concord, North Carolina, Concord. The po ...

. In 1940, Whitener was elected to the

North Carolina House of Representatives The North Carolina House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the North Carolina General Assembly. The House is a 120-member body led by a Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives, Speaker of the House, who holds powers si ...

and was renominated in 1942 but resigned to enter the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

. 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 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 (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the Eighty-fifth and to the five succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1957 – January 3, 1969); he was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1968 to the

Ninety-first Congress The 91st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from January 3, 19 ...

and an unsuccessful candidate for election in 1970 to the Ninety-second Congress. He resumed the practice of law. In 1966, Whitener unsuccessfully introduced an amendment to a bill to make Title VI of the

Civil Rights Act of 1964 The Civil Rights Act of 1964 () is a landmark civil rights and United States labor law, labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on Race (human categorization), race, Person of color, color, religion, sex, and nationa ...

inoperative. Whitener was a resident of

until his death there on March 20, 1989.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Whitener, Basil 1915 births 1989 deaths University of South Carolina alumni People from York County, South Carolina People from Gastonia, North Carolina Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from North Carolina 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 20th-century members of the North Carolina General Assembly