Creative Trouble Making

Andrade was a paradox—a powerful and effective leader who was never alone—she was always surrounded by the workers she organized. She engaged them wherever they were, home or workplace, picket line or parade, citizenship class or sewing project—politically, culturally, personally. She moved easily between the food table at a union celebration to frequently being the only woman in union leadership gathering. Her relationship with Local 23-25 and later ILGWU president Jay Mazur is a kind of a buddy story—albeit a contentious buddy story. For decades they verbally sparred yet worked together with remarkable effectiveness. Andrade has been called the east coast Dolores Huerta—an unsung immigrant woman leader in a union where a much more well-known man was the face of the movement.