One percent of the population owns 41% of the wealth and 22% of children of color live in poverty. We are losing the war that has been waged by plutocrats against the poor over the past thirty years as wealth has been systematically flowing from the poor to the wealthy.

In this video, recorded at the 10th Annual Fighting Bob Fest in Madison, Wisconsin, Dr. Cornel West talks about the democratic awakening we are experiencing, and how it can combat poverty and raise wages. Social unrest is not impossible, Dr. West notes.

This segment is part of a new video series produced by Video Nation in collaboration with On the Earth Productions featuring progressive thinkers and leaders such as Sen. Bernie Sanders, Jim Hightower and Thom Hartmann. Watch the series introduction and check back each Wednesday for a new video in the series.

—Jin Zhao