Biography
American attorney and consumer advocate who effectively changed
American awareness of product viability. His work led to the Traffic
Safety Act of 1968 and many other consumer safety laws.
Born to Nadra and Rose, Lebanese immigrants who operated a restaurant
and bakery, Nader learned at a young age the duties of citizenship and
justice during dinner discussions with his brother Shafeek and sister
Laura. He graduated from the Gilbert School in 1951, entered Princeton,
and graduated magna cum laude in 1955 with a major in government and
economics. He enrolled in Harvard Law School, became editor of the Harvard
Law Review and graduated with honors in 1958.
After serving in the Army, Nader set up a small legal practice in
Hartford, CT and traveling widely. With a highly developed social
consciousness, he became distressed at the indifference of American
corporations and the abuse of their power. Idealistic and modest, the
lanky 6'4" Nader is known for his Spartan habits and for working 16
hours a day, seven days a week.
He moved to Washington DC in 1964, writing "Unsafe At Any
Speed" the following year in which he accused the auto industry of
producing unsafe vehicles. This led to the passage of the National Traffic
and Motor Vehicle Safety Act in 1966. Nader 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 was at his peak in 1977 when he guest hosted
"Saturday Night Live," and lampooned his own obsession.
Time magazine included Nader on their list of 100 most influential
Americans in the 20th century. His agenda of product safety and greater
corporate accountability became the nation's agenda. When he set his
Raiders loose with exposes of federal agencies, Congress created the
Environmental Protection Agency and the Freedom of Information Act. He
founded the Center for Responsive Law, Public Citizen, Inc. a non-profit
organization, and Essential Information, in 1982, to publish a monthly
magazine, books, reports and sponsor investigative journalism.
Becoming known as America's renowned and effective crusader for the
rights of consumers and the general public, he has repeatedly been in
conflict with both business and government. During the Reagan era, Nader
lived through a time of personal and professional loss. He seemed to lose
his romance with Washington and his advocacy groups hit a stone wall. At
the height of the Reagan White House, Nader developed a nerve condition
called Bell's palsy that froze one side of his face. Said to be
stress-related and temporary, it hung on persistently. The neuritis caused
him to involuntarily shed tears; he took to wearing sunglasses. At the
same time, in 1986, his older brother, Shafeek, with whom he shared a home
and to whom he was closer than anyone in the world, was dying of prostate
cancer. After ten years of serving as a symbol of our industrial malaise,
it became a time when reporters and politicians avoided him and columnists
sought to write his obituary. Nader once again emerged into the national
consciousness in the '90s, perhaps less rigid, certainly more in touch
with the public. His issues tend to be economic ones, such as the pay-hike
sought by Congress (defeated). He came out with his book, "Winning
the Insurance Game," a call to arms against Goliath
corporations.
With a personal life style that is monastic, Nader does not even own a
car and lives alone. He has little interest in clothes and less in
entertainment, spending less than $10,000 a year on himself. Lanky and
stooped, gawky and humble, he may be seen in an old fashioned suit as he
answers people's praise with democratic homespuns. A non-smoker or
drinker, he eats simply with no junk food, little meat, and at his Center
has a rule; no sodas. Personal questions make him squirm, hunch, draw his
big head into his shoulders, then flee. He is habitually obsessive about
cleanliness, pressing a waitress about whether the strawberries have been
washed. He says he's never been close to marriage and his life revolves
around his work. For relaxation, he is a sports fan. Friends and
associates describe him as witty and personable as well as dedicated and
driven. He is obsessively private and does not give out his personal
address.
In 1996 he appeared on the California primary ballot as a candidate for
the presidential nomination of the Green Party. Once again a Green Party
candidate, he aims at looming changes of the medical system to force
creation of universal health care. He said that he doubts that either Al
Gore or George W. Bush would push for "sound medical plans for every
American." In the 1996 elections, he got less than 1 percent of the
vote as the Green's candidate, but he said that he would actively campaign
in 2000 in all 50 states. Nader's latest book is "No Contest:
Corporate Lawyers and the Perversions of Justice in America."
Despite pleas not to run from many former supporters, Ralph Nader
announced his candidacy for President as an Independent. He made his
intention clear on "Meet the Press," Sunday, February 22, 2004. The
Presidential hopeful chose Green Party politician Peter Camejo for his
running mate on June 21, 2004. Not even a week later, on June 27, 2004,
the Green Party announced that it was endorsing other candidates for its
sponsorship in the 2004 elections.
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