Charlie Rangel, Former Harlem Congressman, Passes Away At 94

Charles Rangel, a renowned former congressman who represented the Harlem community on Capitol Hill for nearly fifty years, passed away on Monday.

Michelle Stent, a spokesperson from the City College of New York, confirmed that Rangel passed in the hospital.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., paid tribute to Rangel’s legacy

“Charlie Rangel was a great man, a great friend, and someone who never stopped fighting for his constituents and the best of America,” Schumer wrote on Monday. “The list of his accomplishments could take pages, but he leaves the world a much better place than he found it.”

Born and raised in Harlem, his father, Ralph Rangel, was mostly absent and left the family. His mother, Blanche Mary Wharton, was a domestic worker and as a seamstress in a factory in New York’s Garment District. A promising student, Rangle dropped out of high school in his junior year and enlisted in the US Army. He was a veteran of the Korean War, where he earned a Purple Heart and the Bronze Star. 

After an honorable discharge, he attended college on the G.I. Bill, earning degrees from New York University and St. John’s University Law School.

Beginning his work in politics, her served in the New York State Assembly and was appointed Assistant U.S. Attorney

In 1970, he defeated legendary Harlem politician Rev. Adam Clayton Powell and would represent the community for more than 40  years. He became a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus, dean of the New York congressional delegation, and, in 2007, the first Black chair of the influential Ways and Means Committee.

In 2017,  Rangel retired from the United States Congress 2017 and began serving as the Statesman-in-Residence at The City College. In 2022, Rangel launched the Charles B. Rangel Infrastructure Workforce Initiative (RIWI) at CCNY “to boost modern infrastructure jobs in upper Manhattan and the Bronx.”

He was a member of Alpha Phi Alpha and of the fraternity’s World Policy Council.

Rangle was the last surviving member of The Gang of Four, also known as the Harlem Clubhouse, which dominated the political world of Harlem. He was predeceased by David Dinkins, Basil Paterson, and Percy Sutton.

We at HOT97 extend our prayers and condolences to the family and friends of Congressman Charlie Rangel.