Charlie Rangel, The "Lion Of Lenox," Blazed A Trail With Courage, Conviction, And Humor

Marc H. Morial 
President and CEO
National Urban League

Charlie Rangel wasn’t just a congressman — he was a statesman in every sense of the word. His impact stretched far beyond Harlem, far beyond New York — into the very heart of American politics. — Rev. Michael Faulkner

As then-U.S. Rep. Charlie Rangel waited to receive an award at a National Urban League Legislative Policy Conference, a staff member introduced herself as one of his constituents.

"Why, then, you're the most important person in the world!" Rangel responded.

It was no exaggeration. Throughout his astounding 46 years in the House of Representatives, Rangel advocated fiercely for the diverse communities in his New York City district, including the National Urban League's new headquarters in Harlem.  

The Federal Empowerment Zone project he spearheaded was instrumental in revitalizing urban neighborhoods across the nation. The Low Income Housing Tax Credit legislation he authored financed the majority of affordable housing built over a decade. He also championed the Work Opportunity Tax Credit, which created employment opportunities for thousands of young people, veterans, and ex-offenders. A founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus, he blazed a trail as the first Black chair of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee.

Such was his commitment to his constituents that he risked reelection to defy his own party when he felt their interests were at risk. 

Known as "the Lion of Lenox" — after Harlem's main thoroughfare — Rangel was the last surviving member of the "elder statesmen" of Harlem known as the Gang of Four, along with David N. Dinkins, the first Black New York City mayor; Manhattan Borough President Percy E. Sutton; and New York State Senator and Secretary of State Basil A. Paterson.

When Rangel helped found the Congressional Black Caucus in 1971, there were just 12 members, including such icons as Shirley Chisholm, Ralph Metcalf, and John Conyers.  All of them were included on then-President Richard Nixon's infamous master list of political enemies.

Within 10 years, membership had more than doubled to 26. Today, there are 62 members, including the highest-ranking Democrat House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries."

Rangel's astounding political career sprang from unlikely beginnings. He described himself as "a fatherless high school dropout,” seldom speaking of the abuse he witnessed as a child. “It’s a very painful period,” he once said. “It is too unpleasant to me to open the door to it myself.”  His enlistment in the Army at the age of 18 changed the course of his life. He downplayed his heroism during the Korean War, where he earned Bronze Star and Purple Heart for leading 40 soldiers from behind enemy lines, despite being wounded.

Availing himself of the G.I. Bill, Rangel graduated from New York University in 1957, earning a full scholarship to St. John's University School of Law in 1960.  He quickly became involved in civil rights activism and was appointed Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York by U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy in 1961.

At the National Urban League's Centennial Conference in 2010, Rangel described his experience marching in the 1965 Selma to Montgomery protests with his signature self-mocking humor:

"I didn't go down there to march," he said. "I went down there to get my picture took. But I got caught up in it.  I thought I'd go a couple of miles and get a cab. I'd never been to Selma before, and I didn't know.  And so it became impossible for me to use my ticket home. And so for five days and 54 miles, I cursed every step of the way until it was over. And I realized that those people that I was marching with did not know it, nor did I, but at that time they were making history."

He continued to make history for the next 60 years, inspiring a generation of activists and advocates who carry his legacy forward.

 

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