AFGE Mourns the Passing of National Vice President Andrea E. Brooks

WASHINGTON, D.C., April 28 - Today, the American Federation of Government Employees recognizes the extraordinary contributions of Andrea E. Brooks, national vice-president for the Women and Fair Practices Departments at AFGE. NVP Brooks passed away on April 26 at the age of 65. Funeral arrangements will be forthcoming.

"We are deeply saddened by the tremendous loss of a great friend to AFGE, the labor movement, and to me personally," said AFGE President. John Gage. "Andrea was an ardent fighter for civil, women's and human rights in the workplace and she will be sorely missed."

During the 2008 election season, NVP Brooks led AFGE's successful voter protection campaign and worked closely with several national organizations including the AFL-CIO and Rock the Vote.

NVP Brooks began her government career at Ft. Benjamin Harrison in Indianapolis, Indiana, rising through the ranks of AFGE while working at the Veterans Affairs Department. NVP Brooks was soon chief steward, then vice president, secretary-treasurer, executive vice president and then president for ten years of AFGE Local 490 at the Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Los Angeles, California. She also was a national representative, a national vice president for the 12th District and a member of the Human Rights Committee.

NVP Brooks' labor activism has always included collaboration with the AFL-CIO, where she served on the Executive Council. She was voted vice president of the California State AFL-CIO and helped to formulate the first federal sector subcommittee at the Los Angeles Central Labor Council.

As the national vice president for Women and Fair Practices, Brooks held a vision for AFGE to move into the forefront of civil rights activism. "I want AFGE to be known as the civil rights union," Brooks emphasized.

NVP Brooks believed that too often minorities and women have let others define them. She looked to mobilize a civil rights movement of all races and cultures throughout the United States. NVP Brooks is survived by three adult children–two sons and one daughter–and six grandchildren. She was from Indianapolis.

Statement from AFL-CIO President John Sweeney

The AFL-CIO is deeply saddened to mourn the loss of Andrea Brooks, a strong union leader and committed advocate for lifting up the voices of all people, particularly working women and people of color across the nation. 

Andrea served as National Vice President of the Women and Fair Practices Department at the American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO. She was also a member of the AFL-CIO Executive Council and a former vice president of the California AFL-CIO. 

Not only was Andrea dedicated to the union movement, she was a leader in the movement to improve the broader community and a true fighter for civil rights and social and economic justice. 

AFL-CIO Executive Vice President Arlene Holt Baker and Secretary Treasurer Richard L. Trumka join me in expressing our sadness at the loss of this valued fighter for workers' rights.  Executive Vice President Holt Baker, who worked closely with Andrea on voting rights and election protection in the 2008 elections, remembers Andrea as a strong champion who worked to protect the right to vote for all.

"Andrea was never willing to be silent on the issue of worker justice," Holt Baker said today. "She was a passionate crusader for the rights of all working people, especially women, and she worked tirelessly to advance women within the labor community and the work force."

Andrea will be missed in her union and her community, but the positive impact she made in the lives of workers will live in our work every day.