The year is 1989. Patricia Meili has just been found dead in Central Park. Antron McCray, 15, Kevin Richardson, 15, Yusef Salaam, 15, Raymond Santana, 14, and Korey Wise, 16 are being loaded into police cars after being mentally and physically abused through interrogation at the Central Park precinct. Nearly hours later, the paper titles them the “Central Park Five.” The five were in Central Park that night, amongst other black and latino boys, but never even saw Meili. Yet, they are imprisoned and forced to spend up to 5 years in juvenile prison (and federal prison in Korey Wise’s unfortunate case). They were exonerated in 2002 of all their crimes, and their original title became the “Exonerated Five.” Their story typifies modern systemic racism in America.
The first year of this event caused many headlines to be released with facts, conspiracies and thoughts concerning the case, including Donald Trump’s. During their court hearings, Donald Trump purchased a full page advertisement for $85,000 in newspapers that said “Bring back the death penalty! Bring back our police!” in regard to the fve. According to Heavy, “The ad was placed in four New York papers, including The New York Times, The Daily News, The New York Post and New York Newsday on May 1, 1989, less than two weeks after the brutal rape and assault of Trisha Meili on April 19, 1989. At the time, Trump was a rising real estate businessman.”
The ad continues:
“Many New York families – White, Black, Hispanic and Asian – have had to give up the pleasure of a leisurely stroll in the Park at dusk, the Saturday visit to the playground with their families, the bike ride at dawn, or just sitting on their stoops – given them up as hostages to a world ruled by the law of the streets, as roving bands of wild criminals roam our neighborhoods, dispensing their own viscous brand of twisted hatred on whomever they encounter.”
“They should be forced to suffer and, when they kill, they should be executed for their crimes. They must serve as examples for their crimes.”
“They must serve as examples so that others will think long and hard before committing a crime or an act of violence.”
This threatening advertisement implanted fear and anger into the families and supporters of the five young boys. This made it particularly difficult for the Exonerated Five when Trump was elected as president.
Trump has now lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden, and the first thing many people thought to do was see what the Exonerated Five were doing to celebrate. Kevin Richardson made statements before and after the election:: “To the folks that’s still undecided about whom to vote for this upcoming election… Allow me to reintroduce ourselves. If it was up to Trump’s idea of calling for the death penalty and putting a bounty over my brothers and I head, we wouldn’t be here today!”
Joe Biden also called out Donald Trump during their debates concerning his behavior towards the five. Raymond Santana Jr. commented: “When Joe Biden calls out Donald Trump for wanting to give us the DEATH PENALTY,” he wrote. “We were Kids!! But we are still here.” The other three have yet to make exclusive statements concerning Trump’s loss.
