Charlie Rangel, longtime Congressman from Harlem, dies at 94

Charles Rangel, the longtime U.S. congressman from New York Metropolis and the final surviving member of the “Gang of 4,” has died. He was 94. 

Born in Harlem, Rangel was a member of the Home of Representatives for 46 years. He was a Korean Warfare veteran and a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus. 

“A towering determine in American politics and a champion for justice, fairness, and alternative, Congressman Rangel devoted over 4 a long time of his life to public service,” the Rangel household mentioned in an announcement saying his demise Monday. 

“Charlie was an inspiration and embodied the truest type of management in public service, steadied in his religion and faithfulness within the American folks, and a large unmatched in his management, compassion, and dedication to upholding the values of our nation. I’ll miss him dearly,” Congressman Adriano Espaillat, who grew to become NY-13’s consultant after Rangel retired in 2017, mentioned in an announcement posted to social media. 

Previous to his election to Congress in 1970, Rangel earned a Purple Coronary heart and a Bronze Star for main a bunch of troopers out of a lethal Chinese language military encirclement in the course of the Battle of Konu-ri.

He was additionally the primary Black chair of the Home’s influential Methods and Means Committee.

The final of Harlem’s “Gang of 4” 

Rangel was the final of the so-called “Lions of Harlem,” or the “Gang of 4,” with Basil Paterson, Percy Sutton, Herman Denny Farrell and former Mayor David Dinkins. The “Lions” have been generally known as the primary to interrupt down race and sophistication boundaries, reducing paths for others to observe. 

Rangel was influential within the creation of the Higher Manhattan Empowerment Zone Improvement Company that helped change the financial face of Harlem. 

That is breaking information. Please stick with CBS Information New York for updates.

Marcia Kramer

contributed to this report.