Bambace, Angela (1898–1975)
Bambace, Angela (1898–1975)
American union organizer and leader. Name variations: Angela Camponeschi. Born Angela Bambace, Feb 14, 1898, in Santos, Brazil; died April 3, 1975, in Baltimore, Maryland; dau. of Antonio and Giuseppina (Calabrese) Bambace; m. Romolo Camponeschi, June 1919 (div. 1927); children: 2 sons (b. 1920, 1923).
Labor leader, organized strike for International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union (ILGWU, 1919); left work after marriage but rejoined ILGWU (1925); moved to Baltimore and organized women garment workers, who were denied entry to male-dominated union, into a local (1934); served as assistant manager of ILGWU Maryland Department and worked to increase union's influence in state (1930s–40s); appointed manager of MD-VA District (1942); became head of Upper South Department (formerly MD-VA District) (1947); established outpatient clinic (1956) and pension fund (1957) for union members; became 1st non-Jewish woman to be elected a vice president of ILGWU's general executive board (resigned 1972); appointed to Commission on Status of Women by John F. Kennedy (1962); fought anti-Semitism and racism against black union members in Upper South Department; participated in war-relief programs; worked with Histadrut (Zionist labor movement), Americans for Democratic Action, Italian American Labor Council, and American Civil Liberties Union.