Recidivism
End of Cycle www.endofcycle.com was started in 2008 from within the confines of a Federal Prison in Forrest City, Arkansas. Forrest City is named after a Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest, the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. The three buildings housing inmates are named after Forrest’s granddaughters. The scene was the laundry room where there were about 4 washers and 4 dryers on first floor of a two story building, one of about 4 main dormitories in the Federal Corrections Center. What was obvious was that most of the inmates were people of color with many with long prison sentences of over 20 years, some with no hope to ever seeing the outside of the Constantine wire fences. It was on these washers and dryers that we would sit, conduct bible studies, and come to the full awareness of an ugly part of our beloved country, America.
In 1983 under the Omnibus Tough on Crime bill, planning commenced for a huge increase in privately owned prisons, construction which commenced in November 1987. The federal prison population went from approximately 26,000 to approximately 220,000 in a matter of years. Of all the prisoners in the world, the United States grew to claim 25% of the entire prison population. Private companies in this lucrative business were guaranteed occupancy when they constructed their facilities. So the courts needed to sentence many more and to longer prison sentences for the same level of crime. What transpired was an exponential increase in prisoners which required a corresponding increase in prosecutors, judges, and prisons. And what was evident was that there was a disproportionate rate per capita of people of color to white prisoners.
The prisons did little to rehabilitate those of us who were incarcerated and the recidivism rate was so high that on a daily basis we would see the return of friends who had left, failed, and reentered our world and we received them with jubilation. There was very little hope for a better world for the prisoners themselves much less for their families that were left behind. With Christ at the center of our works, End of Cycle commenced to teach the basics to our fellow prisoners, some so that they could pick up their GED and others as advanced as they wished to dream and work for. So from within the prison was born End of Cycle, originally End the Cycle, and was even incorporated and obtained a 501 (c) 3 non profit status in 2008. On January 5, 2010, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals VACATED all of Isidro Garza, Jr.’s convictions and REMANDED back to District Court. Later in March 2018 as Ulysses Williams was released, they restructured the company into what is now End of Cycle.
Having experienced first hand the judicial system from the streets, through the courts, through the prison system, the mission remains the same but our commitment to help others break the cycle of recidivism is unparalleled. In End of Cycle we are committed to building bridges between people of different races, religions, economic status, and political affiliations with the ultimate goal of building safer communities with larger opportunities of success for all. We are also committed to transform our system from Tough on Crime to Smart on Crime and we are committed to reducing the number of prisoners to only incarcerate those who should be locked up and to provide a support system for those who are returning back to society. Having personally experienced the problems associated with reentry, we plan to break down the barriers that keep a former prisoner from succeeding by teaming up with corporate America and helping them obtain jobs that pay a respectable living wage.
End of Cycle is known for its success in bridge building, working with people of diverse backgrounds that come together within the through the common bond of creating a world of fairness and justice where the respect for the dignity of all is paramount and where the end goal is a safer neighborhood for all of our children. In the past decade, End of Cycle has earned the respect of the entire community: the neighborhoods, law enforcement, prosecutors, judges and it has become the go to place for solutions whenever injustices occur. End of Cycle is on the side of that which is right, and that includes the arenas just mentioned. We defend police and when there is wrongdoing, we advocate for accountability. The same is true with courts and prosecutors. Acting with Conscience should always trump the selfishness of acting out of convenience. What is right is right. What is wrong is wrong.
We have worked on going from Tough on Crime to being Right on Crime. Having said that we are strong advocates for prosecution when harm has been done and there are many who would not have been prosecuted but for our efforts. We have also been advocates for righting our wrongs and have successfully obtained the release of those who should not have been locked up. There is no stronger advocate for law enforcement than End of Cycle and we have established exceptional relationships with the Chief of Police, the Sheriff, the District Attorney, with US Attorney and Department of Justice and with State and Federal Judges. We have more cases than what we can handle and thus the need for us to continue to grow.
Bail reform and prison reform are areas of our laws that we have sponsored. We have a concerted effort to end the cycle of recidivism by working within the schools and prisons. We must succeed in directing the path from school to prison to a path of school to success. We can’t afford not to! We have successfully advocated for reduction in prisons but there is still much more benefits to be harvested with continued efforts. Too often when we have not had good assessments of our students and we cannot handle them, they are sent to a juvenile legal process where they “earn” the title of prisoner and it is in that world where they live the rest of their lives. We do not have adequate rehabilitation preparing them for their release and we have not received them back into society with offering them a second chance. Therefore, they fall back into their unlawful ways. End of Cycle is true to its name and is dedicated to end this cycle of recidivism.
When we at End of Cycle finish our work, those who belong in prison will be in prison. Those who do their part in respecting others as they would like to be respected will be welcomed members of our society and we will all live in a much better world.
Click on link or cut and paste for Ulysses William’s video. https://youtu.be/UG_2b5c4948