Executive Committee Member

Angela Blue is a native of Buffalo, New York. She began her career in the labor movement in 2001, when she was voted in as the recording secretary for Buffalo Urban Renewal Agency, CSEA Local 815, during her 12-year employment with the City of Buffalo. 

In 2005, she began working for the CSEA, AFCSME Local 1000, Region 6 Office. She was temporarily assigned to organize an Erie County coalition of labor, community, and religious leaders, along with legislative and judicial officials to establish a strategic plan to advocate for the restoration of the county budget and suspended services. In the fall of that same year, she took a permanent position at the Region 6 Office as a part of the support staff. It was also in 2005 when Angela joined the Buffalo Chapter of CBTU. In October 2010, she was elected president of the CBTU Buffalo Chapter for a three-year term in which she mentored other young labor unionist for leadership roles within the organization and the labor movement at whole. 

December of 2008, Angela began working for the New York State AFL-CIO as a Community Outreach Specialist, where she is assigned to the Western Region of the state. In that capacity, she works with various labor and community-based organizations, along with area faith leaders and churches to collaborate towards building a joint movement in the fight against social, economic, civil, and human right injustices. Her work on local, state, and national campaigns as well as legislative issues has allowed the labor message to be spread throughout the community. In 2017, Angela was assigned exclusively to the WNY Area Labor Federation to generate and coordinate labor and community programming along with labor’s political season programming, and to support all AFL-CIO affiliate unions during collective bargaining agreement disputes, lockouts, pickets, organizing rallies, etc. 

A brief list of some of the successful labor and legislative campaigns and rallies that Angela enacted community and religious members to become involved were: Employee Free Choice Act, We Are One, Occupy Buffalo, One Nation Working Together Bus to Washington, DC, Farm Workers Rally, Dream Act Rally, Fight for a Fair Economy, WNY Blue Cross Lock Out (OPEIU), Canisius College Contract Rally, Affordable Care Act, Don’t Bypass Buffalo, Fight For Fifteen, Family Paid Leave; Organized initiatives and actions: Labor Religion Coalition, Community Health Fair & Education Symposium, Flash Mob at United States Postal Rally, National Days of Actions, and numerous Get Out the Vote (GOTV) campaigns; organized community forums and workshops: LCLAA Immigration Reform, CBTU Leadership Training, Pride @ Work LGBT Workshop, Next UP TPP Public Forum, Next Up Political Action Training, Pride @ Work Safe Zone Training, AFL-CIO Common Sense Economics, Friedrich’s and Janus Training, and No Con Con (NYS Constitutional Convention). It is with Angela’s tenacity and ability to organize, that she can bring people from all walks of life to stand together in solidarity. 

Angela has been very instrumental in building a diverse labor movement the Western New York area. She, along with several labor, community, and religious organizations collaboratively commissioned the report on Working Towards Equity in Employment. This movement has sparked the conversation on how employment tactics are being reconsidered amongst black workers. She is also responsible for the development and productivity of the area AFL-CIO Constituency Groups along with the AFL-CIO Next Up young worker groups in Buffalo and Rochester, NY. 

Current officer positions and affiliations with partner organizations: 

Besides working in the community and standing for workers’ rights, Angela’s most favorite activities in the world are attending worship service at the Second Baptist Church, Lackawanna, NY, under the pastorate of her husband, Rev. Mark E. Blue, singing with the Praise & Worship Team, and directing the Combined Choir. Angela will continue to work towards earning a Master of Business Administration Degree, Fall of 2020 at Medaille College. 

Angela has been married to Rev. Mark E. Blue for 35 years and is the proud mother of two spectacular young men, Robert Blue of Buffalo, NY and Joseph Blue of New Castle, DE. In October 2014, Angela gained a wonderful daughter-in-law, Kanasha Lauren Neipha Blue, who along with Robert, has joined in the fight for the civil rights of all people. In February 2018, Angela was blessed with her first grandchild, Robyn Elizabeth Blue, the apple of her eye. 

A basic principle that Angela lives by is to treat others the way she wants to be treated.