Sister Robbie Sparks, a longtime business manager and a civil rights leader who led the renaissance of the Electrical Workers Minority Caucus, died on July 28. She was 84.
“We have lost a titan of the labor movement and a dear friend to so many of us,” International President Kenneth W. Cooper said. “Let us remember her relentless work to give all working people the respect and dignity they deserve.”
Sparks, one of eight children from a working-class family in Georgia, grew up in the Jim Crow South. She began working at an early age at a poultry processing plant where she made 52 cents an hour, less than others who did the same job.
In 1966, she went to work on the assembly line at ITE Inc., where she also witnessed disparities in pay and working conditions. Those experiences ignited her passion for organizing workers to achieve equality on the job. Sparks would go on to join Local 2127, working her way up to business manager, a position she held for almost 30 years. She was the first Black woman to hold the position.
Sparks was a force for civil rights, organizing with fellow Georgians Martin Luther King Jr. and John Lewis. She also served as vice president of the Atlanta Labor Council and the A. Philip Randolph Institute, an organization of Black trade unionists who fight for racial equality and economic justice.
“Robbie’s leadership skills were truly unmatched,” said Dorothy Fortier, long-standing EWMC national secretary-treasurer and former Vacaville, Calif., Local 1245 senior assistant business manager. “She was a visionary, a master strategist and a genuine people person.”
One of Sparks’ proudest achievements was representing a delegation of Atlanta leaders traveling to South Africa to welcome Nelson Mandela following his release from prison and the end of apartheid.
“She understood the importance of that moment and was deeply honored to be part of it,” said Rennie Blye, Sparks’ daughter and an international representative.
In 1991, Sparks was elected president of the EWMC. Under her leadership, the EWMC started holding annual conferences, which evolved into the conferences of today that are now held on the weekend of the Martin Luther King holiday. Thanks to her inspiration, the conference has grown to be the third-largest event of the IBEW in a non-convention year. Sparks also penned the caucus’ motto: “Always moving forward, forever lifting up. Strength through diversity.”
“Her work with the EWMC was transformative,” Blye said. “She helped shape the organization into a stronger and more influential voice within the labor movement. Her legacy will inspire generations to come.”
Through the EWMC, Sparks worked with fellow caucus members to create change within the IBEW. She championed younger workers getting involved in their local unions and elsewhere, which helped lead to the formation of the IBEW’s RENEW/NextGen Committee.
She also led the push for IBEW Strong, the union’s initiative to create more diversity, equity and inclusion in the IBEW, particularly within leadership.
Sparks’ EWMC tenure included establishing an EWMC scholarship fund, mentoring programs, community service projects, increasing the number of chapters and growing membership.
EWMC member Edwin Lopez, a former business representative of New York Local 3 and executive director of the NECA chapter in New York City, remembers how steadfast she was when it came to advocating for minority workers.
“Robbie had the ability to speak truth to power,” Lopez said, recalling a time in the late 1990s when they met with International President J.J. Barry to discuss the EWMC. “She respectfully disagreed with him on a few points and told him what needed to be done. She was like that. She could impact the president of the IBEW.”
The EWMC is often considered to be the conscience of the IBEW, and Sparks is the one who’s responsible for that, Lopez said.
Beginning in 2005, Sparks represented the IBEW on the AFL-CIO Executive Council, the federation’s top leadership body. She held the position until 2012.
Equality, Dignity and Respect
“The EWMC gives IBEW members who feel disenfranchised a place in the union where they can feel like they belong,” Lopez said. “It’s a place for them to get involved in their unions and their communities. For Robbie, it was always about making the union, and you, better.”
Sparks’ ability to work with those in positions of power was matched by her warmth toward the rank-and-file.
“She had so much love to give,” said Keith Edwards, the EWMC’s immediate past president and a former business manager of Portland, Ore., Local 48. “She made a difference in so many people’s lives.”
Everett, Wash., Local 191 Business Manager Randy Curry remembers the first time he met Sparks.
“I was on the elevator with Robbie and we had a great conversation about life and our own history. She was incredibly sweet and personable,” Curry recalled. “I didn’t know it was her in that moment. Then 20 minutes later, she was up on stage, and I realized the power and integrity she displayed every day. It made me feel so welcome and loved.”
Sparks had the ability to bring people together said Sherilyn Wright, a recipient of the EWMC’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
“She could read people well, and saw their true colors,” said Wright, who recently retired from her position as senior executive assistant to the international president. “She saw their potential and made sure they saw it, too.”
Former Los Angeles Local 11 Business Manager Marvin Kropke remembers when Sparks invited him and other Local 11 members to participate in a reenactment of the walk across the Edmund Pettus bridge in Selma, Ala., a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement and the nation’s history.
“She told us how horrible and dehumanizing that time was,” Kropke said. “It was incredibly moving and educational for us.”
Sparks was known for using her power and her strength to help others, said Denise Johnson, a retired director of the Agreement Approval Department.
“She believed in taking a step back in order to help the next one up,” said Johnson, who joined the EWMC in 2001.
Blye wants other IBEW members to know that her mother was a principled person who genuinely cared about every individual she encountered.
“She led not only with her words, but by the example of a life lived with faith, integrity and service. She was a trailblazer,” Blye said. “Above all, she will be remembered as the epitome of a woman who was unapologetically herself, who stood firm in her convictions and inspired others to do the same.”
For many, Sparks’ unyielding mission to lift people up — and therefore improve not just the IBEW but the labor movement as a whole — is only matched by her strength of spirit and capacity for love.
“To truly honor Robbie, let us never forget to lead with love,” Cooper said, “Rest in power, Sister Sparks.”
Electrical Workers Minority Caucus President Emeritus Robbie Sparks died Tuesday, July 28, 2026. International President Kenneth W. Cooper issued the following statement:
“The IBEW and the entire labor movement have lost one of the great voices for workers’ justice and civil rights. Growing up in Jim Crow Georgia, Robbie Sparks joined the fight against segregation. Later, as business manager of IBEW Local 2127, she helped lead the fight for dignity and respect for all working people. As a founder and later president of the Electrical Workers Minority Caucus, she blazed paths of opportunity for Black, Latino, Asian, and women workers in the IBEW. Because of her hard work and leadership, the IBEW is bigger, stronger, and more rooted in every community than ever before. Our prayers go out to her family and friends. Her legacy will continue to inspire future generations of IBEW activists.”
Tributes to Sister Sparks poured in from across the IBEW and the greater labor movement on the IBEW's Facebook page:
Funeral services were held Aug. 7, 2026, in Atlanta.
Condolences may be sent to the family of Robbie J. Sparks at:
8320 Wilkerson Mill Road
Palmetto, GA 30268
