Isaac Wright Jr.

“In my experience in life, nothing good happens, most of the time, without a fight.”

“The only changes that we can make as people is changes in leadership. But as a people, it's very, very difficult once those people get into those positions for us to make any changes.”

“I was sentenced in 1991 to life in prison.”

“Just a look at the face of the officer kneeling on George Floyd's neck is indicative of the cause behind what he was doing. His face showed no concern.”

“Once I made the decision to represent myself, I knew that I was very, very far behind in learning, understanding and in skills. I just went on a quest and spent 16 to 18 hours every day teaching myself the law.”

“The first time I picked up a law book, it was like I had done it all my life. There was just something that happened to me when I did that, and I realized there was a hidden gift there I didn't know I had.”

“I don't consider myself a true activist, in the sense that I don't like to do a lot of talking. I'll ask once or twice, and then it's time to fight.”

“Sometimes when a thing hits you, it hits you in levels, and the reality of what's happening has been a progression for me.”

“My parents came from the south. So their ancestors were actually slaves in this country.”

“I think one of the things that happens with, especially in the criminal justice system, is that the prosecutor is able to control the narrative from the very, very beginning. The moment an arrest is made, they put out a press release to the media and the media follows that narrative.”

“Even on the witness stand at trial, there were people up there and I had no clue who they were. I had never seen them a day in my life and they were pointing the finger at me saying that I was their boss.”

“I knew early on that I was going to prison for the rest of my life and that there was nothing that no one was going to be able to do to help me.”

“I'm going to ensure justice, where justice is shaky.”

“I got sentenced in 1991. It's 2020, and my family and I have not discussed what happened to me.”

“I know the air of hopelessness and what people in prison go through.”

“I take a lot of pro bono cases, and I always have to balance my pro bono cases with my paying clients because this is a law firm - this is a business.”

“Aside from my own fight, I was continuously engaged in the fight for others. So, for decades, all I did was fight. What that did to me is it didn't give me the time to reflect on my own feelings.”

“You plead guilty you get 20 years, you plead guilty you get 15 years. That's the lowest time I heard and I said I'm no kingpin, I didn't do this. I decided at that moment that I was going to prison and I wasn't going to pay someone to send me to prison. I decided to put the gloves on, string up the boots, and get into the fight.”

“I became so disenfranchised, I dropped out of school and I moved to New York.”

“It didn't matter whether I had a penny or whether I had a billion dollars. There was nothing that was going to keep me out of a courtroom, and there was nothing that was going to keep me from helping others.”