The astrophysicist says that when you have people who don't know much about science denying it and rising to power, it's a recipe for the complete dismantling of our democracy.

Just in time for Earth Day, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson releases a short film on Facebook that he says “may be the most important words I have ever spoken.” It’s already been viewed nearly 20 million times.

DeGrasse Tyson highlights some of the points he made in his three-part series of conversations with Bill Moyers in 2014, which explored a variety of topics, including the beauty of the scientific method in the search for truth, the value of innovations in science and technology in the ascendency of America, and how political debates about established science are delaying critical conversations about the best ways to combat climate change.

“You have not fully expressed your power as a voter until you have a scientific literacy in topics that matter for future political issues,” he told Bill. “This requires a base level of science literacy that I don’t think we have achieved yet.”

Dig deeper and watch all three episodes.