Blessings For Midwin Charles, Attorney, & Legal and Social Justice Analyst

Photo Credit: Deadline

On Tuesday, April 6, 2021, attorney and MSNBC legal analyst, Midwin Charles, passed away at age 47. The week before, she had postponed one of her group Instagram gatherings, saying she wasn’t feeling well. Before that, she celebrated Deb Haaland: “This is amazing news! Herstory made during Women’s History Month could not be more poetic. Deb Haaland is the first Native American to serve as a cabinet member in 2021? Appalling it took this long. Native Americans were almost driven to extinction by genocide when Europeans arrived on these shores. She is the 35th generation on this land. Yes, 35.” And prior to that, she had gone with her vaccine reluctant Mom to get vaccinated. Midwin was thrilled that her mother got vaccinated, and was encouraging friends to keep at their parents who were reluctant.

But In a post this week, her family reported that she had passed away. Her family reported: “It is with a profoundly heavy heart and the deepest sadness that we announce the untimely passing of our beloved Midwin Charles.” They continued, “She was known to many as a legal commentator on television but to us, she was devoted daughter, sister, aunt, niece, and cousin. Our lives are forever changed and we will miss her for a lifetime. The family thanks you in advance for your love and prayers.”

Midwin Charles, who also appeared on CNN and contributed to Essence magazine, and The Huffington Post, was born and raised in Brooklyn. She was a member of the Dean’s Diversity Council for American University’s Washington College of Law and served on the board of Women in Entertainment Empowerment Network (WEEN). With this, Charles was a member of the Civil Rights Committee for the Association of the Bar of the City of New York and lectured at Syracuse University. She founded the law firm, Midwin Charles & Associates, in New York City.

According to TODAY, Charles also worked for CNN as a legal contributor for “In Session,” and started “Infinite Possibilities of the Law Degree.”

MSNBC’s Joy Reid shared she was “stunned” by the news of Charles’ Death. Reid tweeted, “Midwin dear heart, you were a brilliant spirit and beautiful soul. You were such a blessing, I’m just stunned, and have been since I learned of this today.”

The New York Post also shared that, “White House principal deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also paid tribute to the lawyer.” She shared, “This one hit really hard today. Rest in Power Sis @MidwinCharles.”

Awe, Dang It!...MSNBC's Your Business With JJ Ramberg Closes Up Shop

After 12 years on the air every Sunday morning, after what was supposed to be a 6 month run, Your Business with JJ Ramberg has ceased production in December 2018. You can look at their first show announcement over at Ad Week when they were just babies in 2006!

According to a comment down in the show’s Facebook page, the sponsor did not renew for 2019. Which is a stinker because one would think there would be other sponsors out there. According to Wikipedia, American Express OPEN was the sponsor.

JJ Ramberg showcased many small businesses - small and large - including a few Tin Shingle Members - on her show over the years. During that time, she got married and had three kids, who she brought to work at times (see them in the show’s last highlight reel). She also has a podcast, Been There. Built That, that reveals details on journeys to success, what it took to build companies, and turn a No into Yes. The last episode, however, was released in December 2018.

What Will JJ Ramberg Do Next?

She’s unstoppable, so is sure to pop up again somewhere, in probably a big way. The show had a loyal following of small business enthusiasts. JJ knew that small business is personal, and talked about that often in her segments. Your Business was the longest running at MSNBC after Chris Matthew’s Hardball.

JJ is the co-founder of Goodshop with her brother. Goodshop “has the most powerful coupons in the world.” They provide the best shopping deals on the internet, but they also make a donation to the nonprofit or school of your choice for almost every purchase you make. “You also give, at no extra cost,” is their motto.

Goodshop is connected with over 114,000 nonprofits and schools. You can shop for your cause no matter the scale: whether it be your local animal shelter, or a national cancer research organization. If your nonprofit or school isn't listed, you can add them to their list.

Over the past nine years, Goodshop has helped organizations do everything from medical research, to buying books for local libraries, to helping clean up pollution from city rivers. Through deals and coupons generated from the website, Goodshop has raised over $13 million dollars.

We are looking into JJ Ramberg’s next steps for our members-only Media Contact Research Center. If you have a tip, email it into us!

What Business Show To Pitch Now?

Consider Poppy Harlow’s podcast Boss Files with Poppy Harlow. There is of course her show that she co-anchors on CNN, but you should also pursue the podcast. Contact details and ideas for Poppy’s podcast can be found in Tin Shingle’s Media Contact library.