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Reincarceration. so people are being sentenced to life. we have juveniles in this country who are sentenced to life. and that actually means a death sentence, that you will not leave prison until you die. so i think the policy of elected officials and people need to pay attention to this. elected officials definitely need to respond to the situation here. >> you know, douglas, i'm a voracious reader, and one to have the books that most impacted me in my life, maybe in the top 7 to 10 books, is your book. because you really broke down in "slavery by another name," that after we got through slav...

Several states are refusing to work, eat and comply with orders from officials until multiple concerns are addressed. among them, prisoner safety, amid a rash of inmate deaths and the meager wages inmates receive to work as farmers, manufacturers or major retailers and even firefighters. all for pennies on the hour. compulsory, yet legal, under the 13th amendment. joining me, a former inmate who is now a prison reform activist and douglas blockman, processor at georgedown and author of "slavery by another name." let me start with you, first,

Douglas. the strike, among other things they are saying is the meager wages, pennies per hour that they are forced to do that is reaping major profits for private businesses. most americans or at least many, don't even know that's happening. explain. >> you are right. most americans don't understand how much commercial activity goes on inside prisons across the country. now, it's also, it may not be as much activity as we imagine, sometimes, too. it's not that essential to the economy, but an incredibly important dimension to the lives of thousands of prisoners. what the strike is about is on ...