Being a good listener and stepping outside her comfort zone was the key to understanding how political action unlocks working peoples’ power.

As an 1199 Rite Aid pharmacy member in Astoria, Queens for ten years and single mother of three, Angelique Huerta already had a lot of responsibility even before she became a Delegate.

But she recognized that she was a good listener and enjoyed hearing other people’s stories, so six years ago she decided she could make a difference to her co-workers’ lives by becoming a Union Delegate.

“I wanted to advocate for the other members in my shop,” says Huerta, who works as a Shift Supervisor. “At first, I was not interested in politics outside of Rite Aid. At the time, I barely voted.”

It was not until her 1199 political organizer started inviting her to community board meetings that Huerta began to realize how local politics also affected the quality of life in her community.

“There are not enough bus services in our area, which makes it much harder for people with disabilities two get around,” says Huerta. “There is an area near where I live that is really dangerous for pedestrians. There is a large pothole in the street that gets filled up with water when it rains, so people can’t tell how deep it is. These are the kinds of things that we can bring to our community board.”

Huerta started putting the pieces together about how funding decisions that affected her and her fellow members’ lives were being made at the local, state and national levels.

“If we don’t get engaged with politics, the decisions made are going to affect us anyway,” she says. “We can’t stay silent. If we don’t fight, we will end up being stamped on.”

The more she got involved in political action, the more she began to feel the power that ordinary people could wield by coming together in numbers and lobbying their elected representatives.

She attended the Albany rally in March 2023, when more than 15,000 members from all over the state marched around the capital to close the Medicaid funding gap. Huerta persuaded five other members to come with her, who had not been aware of the action. “When we walk around and our elected representatives see purple, they can see power,” she told them.

Along with a group of fellow members from Queens, Huerta visited New York State Senator Jessica Ramos in her Albany office to tell her firsthand about the needs of the Elmhurst community in NYS District 13, that she represents.

In 2024, Huerta joined the Weekend Warriors and canvassed for Laura Gillen in U.S. Congressional District 4 every weekend for months. There she helped the Long Island candidate unseat the one term Republican incumbent and flip the district back to the Democrats. Huerta supported Gillen partly because of her pledge to protect access to reproductive health care, including abortion, as well as in vitro fertilization and contraception.

The razor thin majority which the Republicans now hold in Congress is due in large part to the seats that 1199 members helped to flip. There will be a special election coming up soon in New York State which could change the balance of power nationally, if the Democratic candidate were to be elected.

Originally from Mexico, Huerta is a firm believer in promoting diversity and fighting against discrimination. Since the extremist Republican administration took office, Huerta says she no longer feels safe.

“I feel devastated by the results of the November election, and I worry about my future, my kid’s future and my neighbors future,” says Huerta.

Healthcare costs are already too high, and she sees many people having to pay out of pocket for their prescriptions at Rite Aid as more and more insurance companies cut their members’ benefits.

Many people in her community rely on Medicaid, so Huerta sees firsthand how important it is to preserve and expand those benefits.

“It is not easy for many people right now. But we have to think positively and not give up. We have survived worse and at least we know that women’s rights are protected in New York State,” says Huerta. “I’m hoping for a better future, especially if more young people get involved in unions. If we all step out of our comfort zones and come together, I know we can make a change.”