Exonerated Central Park Five Member Raymond Santana To Run For New York City Council
Source: Chip Somodevilla / Getty
It was a long road to Raymond Santana’s vindication. One of the Central Park Five, he was 14 when he was arrested for the rape and beating of Trisha Meili, who years later identified herself as the woman attacked in the park in 1989. Santana spent five years in jail after being convicted then another almost six years on a parole violation and a drug charge.
But in 2002, Santana and Yusuf Salaam, Khorey Wise, Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson were exonerated after a serial rapist came forward and confessed to the crime. New York City eventually settled with the group, paying each of them $1M apiece for each year they were imprisoned. Their story was covered in a documentary and the 2019 Netflix limited series When They See Us.
In 2023, Salaam won a City Council seat in his native Harlem. Now, after years of living in Georgia, Santana moved back to East Harlem and has announced that he wants to join Salaam on City Council.
“To have a community that stood by me when Donald Trump and the rest of the world attacked us,” Santana told the New York Times. They always had my back. So I have to have theirs.”
Santana faces a lot of competition in the race for his district which encompasses part of the Bronx. Not only that, he has no political experience aside from being an activist amplifying social justice issues through his work with the Five.
Per the Times, he’ll have to beat out Elsie Encarnacion, outgoing 8th District councilwoman Diana Ayala’s chief of staff. Lawyer Wilfredo López, another strong candidate with City Council support, is reportedly being funded by a Super PAC.
Santana says he will run on a platform of quality of life issues, including curtailing trash and homelessness, as well as strengthening relationships between police and the community and helping ex-offenders return to society after they do their time. He has sought counsel from Salaam and is expected to be on the ballot in the primary in June. Santana also has a memoir, Pushing Hope, geared to young adult readers, coming out later this year.
“I’ve always said those who have been closest to the pain should have a seat at the table,” Salaam said about Santana’s candidacy.. “I think it’s important we stand up to lead, especially in times of the most darkness.”
