RALPH NADER
Ralph Nader is American's most renowned and effective crusader
for the rights of consumers and the general public, a role
that has repeatedly brought him into conflict with both
business and government.
Ralph Nader was born in Winsted, Connecticut to Nathra and
Rose Nader, Lebanese immigrants who operated a restaurant and
bakery. Nader's dream of becoming a "people's lawyer" was
instilled in him in adolescence by his parents, who in noisy
free-for-alls, conducted family seminars on the duties of
citizenship in a democracy. Mark Green, a former Nader
associate, said that "When (the Naders) sat around the table
growing up it was like the Kennedys. Except that the subject
was not power but justice."
Following his graduation in 1951 from Gilbert School, Nader
entered the Woodrow Wilson School of International Affairs at
Princeton University. Graduating magna cum laude in 1955, with
a major in government and economics, Nader enrolled in Harvard
Law School. He became an editor of the Harvard Law Review, and
after graduating with honors, set up a small legal practice
and traveled widely.
The young attorney became distressed by the indifference of
American corporations to the global consequences of their
actions, and he began to speak out against the abuse of
corporate power. He first made headlines in 1965 with his
book, Unsafe at Any Speed, which took the auto industry to
task for producing unsafe vehicles. Nader became an American
folk hero when executives of General Motors hired private
detectives to harass him and then publicly apologized before a
nationally televised Senate committee hearing.
The consumer advocate went on to create an organization of
energetic young lawyers and researchers (often called "Nader's
Raiders") who produced systematic exposés of industrial
hazards, pollution, unsafe products, and governmental neglect
of consumer safety laws. Nader is widely recognized as the
founder of the consumers' rights movement. He played a key
role in the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency,
the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Freedom
of Information Act and the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
He has continued to work for consumer safety and for the
reform of the political system through his group Public
Citizen.
For many years, Ralph Nader has harshly criticized the two
major political parties for preserving a campaign finance
system that makes them both dependent on wealthy contributors.
In 1996 he appeared on the ballot in some states as the
Presidential candidate of the Green Party, but ran a largely
symbolic campaign, making only a handful of public appearances
to promote his candidacy. He made a more substantial effort in
2000, running nationwide as the candidate of the Green Party.
He won nearly three million votes nationwide, close to three
percent of the votes cast. After the closest presidential
election in American history, many Democrats blamed Nader for
their loss of the presidency. They speculated that had Nader
not entered the race, they would have won enough of Nader's
voters in either one of two states to shift the balance of
electoral victory in their favor. Despite opposition from many
of his previous supporters, Ralph Nader determined to run for
president a third time in 2004, as in independent candidate.
He lives and maintains his offices in Washington, DC.
Ralph Nader is American's most renowned and effective crusader
for the rights of consumers and the general public, a role
that has repeatedly brought him into conflict with both
business and government.
Ralph Nader was born in Winsted, Connecticut to Nathra and
Rose Nader, Lebanese immigrants who operated a restaurant and
bakery. Nader's dream of becoming a "people's lawyer" was
instilled in him in adolescence by his parents, who in noisy
free-for-alls, conducted family seminars on the duties of
citizenship in a democracy. Mark Green, a former Nader
associate, said that "When (the Naders) sat around the table
growing up it was like the Kennedys. Except that the subject
was not power but justice."
Following his graduation in 1951 from Gilbert School, Nader
entered the Woodrow Wilson School of International Affairs at
Princeton University. Graduating magna cum laude in 1955, with
a major in government and economics, Nader enrolled in Harvard
Law School. He became an editor of the Harvard Law Review, and
after graduating with honors, set up a small legal practice
and traveled widely.
The young attorney became distressed by the indifference of
American corporations to the global consequences of their
actions, and he began to speak out against the abuse of
corporate power. He first made headlines in 1965 with his
book, Unsafe at Any Speed, which took the auto industry to
task for producing unsafe vehicles. Nader became an American
folk hero when executives of General Motors hired private
detectives to harass him and then publicly apologized before a
nationally televised Senate committee hearing.
The consumer advocate went on to create an organization of
energetic young lawyers and researchers (often called "Nader's
Raiders") who produced systematic exposés of industrial
hazards, pollution, unsafe products, and governmental neglect
of consumer safety laws. Nader is widely recognized as the
founder of the consumers' rights movement. He played a key
role in the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency,
the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Freedom
of Information Act and the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
He has continued to work for consumer safety and for the
reform of the political system through his group Public
Citizen.
For many years, Ralph Nader has harshly criticized the two
major political parties for preserving a campaign finance
system that makes them both dependent on wealthy contributors.
In 1996 he appeared on the ballot in some states as the
Presidential candidate of the Green Party, but ran a largely
symbolic campaign, making only a handful of public appearances
to promote his candidacy. He made a more substantial effort in
2000, running nationwide as the candidate of the Green Party.
He won nearly three million votes nationwide, close to three
percent of the votes cast. After the closest presidential
election in American history, many Democrats blamed Nader for
their loss of the presidency. They speculated that had Nader
not entered the race, they would have won enough of Nader's
voters in either one of two states to shift the balance of
electoral victory in their favor. Despite opposition from many
of his previous supporters, Ralph Nader determined to run for
president a third time in 2004, as in independent candidate.
He lives and maintains his offices in Washington, DC.