communist party (CP). While some truly believe the demise of the UCAPAWA was caused by the involvement with the Radical Party, many members of UCAPAWA believed themselves to be more liberal than anything. The argument of whether the union leaders were supporters of Communism set off an argument between many local leaders. Vicki L. Ruiz makes a very important statement in her book She writes that “UCAPAWA certainly had a leftist stance, though the nature and extent of its leftist ideology will continue to be debated.” Despite their roots or political stance, the UCAPAWA had shown that it could organize the nation’s most vulnerable workers. It also showed that women and minority groups were capable of playing an important role in the labor movement. Role of women One of the most prominent roles that UCAPAWA played was in the workplace for women, especially Mexican women. Forming half of UCAPAWA’s total membership, women were not silent partners. On the contrary, they performed various services ranging from negotiating contracts to calling numbers at bingo. Women organizing women became a union hallmark. Women enthusiastically joined a labor organization that actively encouraged their involvement and offered them genuine opportunities for leadership. UCAPAWA food and tobacco locals proved successful in securing higher wages and benefits that were particularly important to women. In fact, one of the most important positions, Vice President, was filled by Dorothy Ray Healey. Left-wing labor activists like Healey were successful because they embraced the Popular Front viewpoint and represented themselves as links to ethnic communities and as advocates of racial equality. Healey was assisted by a core group of college students and Young Communist League members who worked in the plant during the summer and were actively involved in organizing. In the beginning, UCAPAWA had the financial support of the CIO, but there were hard times ahead for the newly-formed organization. UCAPAWA was one of the few labor unions that allowed women to hold positions of authority. There, they pushed for such benefits as maternity leave and equal pay, and they were on the forefront in the struggle for women's equality. By 1937, Henderson could report a membership of over 120,000 workers in more than 300 locals. By 1946, nearly nine of ten cannery contracts set the minimum wage at sixty-five cents an hour. Two thirds contained "equal pay for equal work" clauses. More importantly, three fourths provided leave of absence