Nader’s Raiders

American organization

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

July 16, 2026

Quick Summary

Nader's Raiders was a group of activists and lawyers who supported consumer advocate Ralph Nader. They became known for their investigative work and advocacy on various consumer safety and public interest issues.

The group gained prominence following Nader's 1965 book, "Unsafe at Any Speed", which criticized the American auto industry for prioritizing style over safety. This led to the passage of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act in 1966. Nader used funds from a lawsuit against General Motors, who had attempted to discredit him, to establish advocacy organizations, including Public Citizen. Nader's Raiders focused on issues such as nuclear safety, international trade, and banking regulation, significantly transforming consumer advocacy through research and lobbying for new laws.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

2 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Ralph Nader
…activists, who became known as Nader’s Raiders, he helped establish a number of advocacy organizations, most notably Public Citizen. Nader’s Raiders became involved in such issues as nuclear safety, international trade, regulation of insecticides, meat processing, pension reform, land use, and banking.
Read More
…activists, who became known as Nader’s Raiders, he helped establish a number of advocacy organizations, most notably Public Citizen. Nader’s Raiders became involved in such issues as nuclear safety, international trade, regulation of insecticides, meat processing, pension reform, land use, and banking.
Read More