 If you're like me, you know America's criminal justice system is broken. Whether it's affected you personally or not, it's something we need to talk about right now. Even though crime rates across the U.S. are going down, America locks up seven times more people now than we did in 1970. Seven times. We as Americans put more people behind bars than any other nation in the world, both as a percentage of population and in total numbers. More than Russia, China. How does that add up? 2.3 million people. That's how. If nothing changes, one out of every 17 white men will end up in jail. One in six Latinos and close to one in four black men born today will be locked up at some point in their life. And we're putting women in jail even faster than we're locking up men. Our nation is divided on so much, but not this. And still, our government does next to nothing to fix it. Why? Well, for a start, slavery, the 13th Amendment, institutional racism, the war on drugs, police and private industry, immigration policy, I get it. We may not be able to fix all of that quickly, but there are parts of the problem we could fix right now, and it's just not getting done. So I'm going to lay out the case against those responsible, and by the end of this video, you're going to need to decide what to do. Exhibit A. This is a 2014 shareholder report from one of the nation's largest private prison companies. Private prisons are for-profit corporations, by the way. They hold 10% of Americans' prison inmates and three-quarters of all immigrant detainees. Here's what they said. The demand for our facilities and services could be adversely affected by the relaxation of enforcement efforts. Any changes with respect to drugs and controlled substances or illegal immigration could affect the number of persons arrested, convicted, and sentenced, thereby potentially reducing demand for correctional facilities to house them. They are literally saying, the more people we lock up, the more money they make. In the last 10 years, the private prison industry spent $64 million lobbying our government for longer sentences, stricter laws, and tougher enforcement. And this year alone, they'll make $6 billion in revenue, and you're paying for it with your tax money. Now, Exhibit B. 60% of people in jail across America are awaiting trial and haven't even been convicted of a crime. 90% of them can't afford bail, so they sit in jail awaiting trial, probably lose their job, or pay even more money to borrow from a for-profit bondsman. Exhibit C, D, E, and F, and too many more. Many judges are elected by voters, and they've been shown to give harsher sentences as they get closer to election day. That's crazy. In recent years, 50 to 60% of political donations for key judicial positions come from lawyers, lobbyists, and business interests. Massive corporations use inmates as virtually free labor instead of hiring paid workers. I know you remember the BP oil spill. Well, guess what? They made inmates clean it up, and most of them African-American. They paid them pennies on the dollar, then qualified for a $2,400 tax kickback for every inmate they used. Surprise, surprise. Special interests helped write the laws that created these programs. And then there are the prosecutors' associations, police unions, drug companies. These multi-billion dollar industries have a grip on our elected leaders just so they can keep turning profits, angling to protect their power regardless of public opinion. Whether it's prisons, healthcare, taxes, education, or the economy, our broken political system is standing in our way when it should be working for us. Now before I ask you whether or not you're going to do something about this, I want you to know what's possible. My friend Desmond not only knows what to do, but has proven it can be done. After serving time, he went on to lead the campaign to win back voting rights for 1.4 million former inmates in the state of Florida. Thank you for your work, Desmond. Thank you, Omar. It's going to be real hard to address the problems we just laid out unless we first fix America's corrupt political system. That means banning gifts from lobbyists to politicians, closing the revolving door between Congress and industry, and then franchising even more voters so politicians actually represent us. These ideas are all part of a law called the American Anti-Corruption Act. This act is popular with both conservatives and progressives because it is not about giving power to one party or the other. It's about fixing the systems behind America's biggest problems, like our broken prison system. But even though it's incredibly popular, politicians from both parties refuse to pass major anti-corruption laws when they have the opportunity. It's not surprising. They benefit from the system just the way it is. But we can't wait for them. So we have to go around Congress because throughout American history, passing state laws have paved the way for the passage of transformative federal laws. If we follow in their footsteps, we can win. And we already are. We just need one more thing. Omar, the floor is yours. Thank you, Des. Thank you. This is the part where you make your choice. Desmond and I are part of a movement that believes the government should work for you and your family, not just a handful of billionaires in special interest. Millions of people have already joined up and are working across party lines to pass anti-corruption laws. Together, we've already racked up more than 100 victories. And in 2018, we passed the most anti-corruption laws in the history of our country. Let's be honest. America is facing a crisis. And we need to act with an urgency commensurate to the severity of the problem. And that's on you. It's on me. It's on all of us. Go to represent.us and sign up to be a part of the next anti-corruption victory in your state. There are already people near you fighting this fight, and they need your help. If that's not for you, join the Commonwealth, a community of people given whatever amount they can every month to support local anti-corruption campaigns. Every single dollar goes to the front lines of the fight, not to overhead or organizational expenses. Here's the bottom line. Nearly every issue that matters to you or that matters to the next generation of Americans is blocked by our corrupt political system. And if you do nothing, or if I do nothing, nothing is going to change. But if each of us does something, we can win together. Go to represent.us and join us.