"The struggles and victories of the UAW form an important chapter in the story of American democracy. American Vanguard is the first and only history of the union available for both general and academic audiences. In this narrative, John Barnard not only records the controversial issues tackled by the UAW but also lends them immediacy through details about the workers and their environments, the leaders and the challenges they faced, and the vision that guided these activists. Throughout, Barnard traces the UAW's twofold goal: to create an industrial democracy in the workplace and to pursue a social-democratic agenda in the interest of the public at large."--Jacket.