By Nick Jacques, News Correspondent

Left-wing activist Ralph Nader encouraged Northeastern students to take action in their communities and criticized the current generation of college students for its lack of engagement in a speech at Blackman Auditorium last night.

Throughout the event, which lasted almost two hours, Nader continually returned to the same point: Get involved in politics.

“Nothing changes if you don’t have fire in your belly,” Nader said. “You are a generation without even embers in your belly.”

The event, entitled “An Evening With Ralph Nader,” was the kick off event for the Husky Environmental Action Team’s (HEAT) sixth annual two-week “Do It in the Dark” contest.

“Do it in the Dark” is a competition between freshmen dorms to see which one can lower its energy use the most.

Nader is considered the founder of the consumer rights movement and is one of the country’s leading environmental activists. He also gained notoriety for his five unsuccessful White House runs as a third-party candidate.

In a press conference before the event, Nader said that when talking to students, his goal is always to motivate them to pursue careers in advancing justice and to become civically conscious.

Nader expressed disappointment with the current generation of students in comparison to students he worked with in the ‘70s.
“It is harder to get a rise out of college and university students today than any time in my 45 years of activity,” Nader said.

Nader argued that civic and environmental engagement is most important during college because it ensures students will be engaged throughout the remainder of their lives.

“If you change your habits, it’s much much more enduring than if just you know something and you get a good score on your grade,” he said.

Nader told the crowd of more than 700 students that by developing environmentally-friendly habits in college and partaking in environmental initiatives on campus, they could carry these practices into their future personal, business and political lives.

Nader recognized middler political science major and audience member Justin Bensan for exemplifying the civic life he was encouraging all students to take up. Bensan is the founder of the Northeastern branch of Students Against T Cuts, an organization protesting the MBTA’s proposal to cut service and raise fares. Bensan was pleasantly surprised by the recognition.

“This is like the best birthday present ever,” said Bensan, who turned 21 yesterday. He said Nader has been an inspiration to him since high school.

Although Bensan may not have exemplified the less engaged students Nader was targeting, he said the night’s message resonated with him.

“I have been starting to get a little tired, physically. He basically just re-lit that fire in me,” Bensan said.

HEAT’s executive director Kayla Mottola said she was very pleased with the turnout and the message of the evening.

“I’ve previously been considering joining the Green Corps after I graduate and it’s just another push for me in the right direction,” Mottola said.

Nader’s rhetoric captivated the packed auditorium during his speech, which was followed by nearly another hour of questions from the audience. The audience was most responsive when Nader turned his criticisms on Congress.

His mockery of anti-global warming Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) was repeatedly interrupted by laughter, as was his comparison of politicians to rodents.

“Right now we have the most craven, stupefying, ignorant, self-immolating Republican Party in history, and I blame the Democratic Party for their existence,” Nader said, as the audience responded with applause.

Nader summed up his worries about the current generation’s political apathy with a warning.

“If you turn off politics, politics will turn on you,” Nader said.