Once wrongly imprisoned for notorious rape, member of ‘Central Park Five’ is running for office

New York City Council candidate Yusef Salaam smiles during an interview with The Associated Press, Wednesday, May 24, 2023, in New York. Salaam is one of three candidates in a competitive June 27 Democratic primary. With early voting already begun, he faces two seasoned political veterans: New York Assembly members Al Taylor, 65, and Inez Dickens, 73, who previously represented Harlem on the City Council. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) New York City Council candidate Yusef Salaam smiles during an interview with The Associated Press, Wednesday, May 24, 2023, in New York. Salaam is one of three candidates in a competitive June 27 Democratic primary. With early voting already begun, he faces two seasoned political veterans: New York Assembly members Al Taylor, 65, and Inez Dickens, 73, who previously represented Harlem on the City Council. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

By BOBBY CAINA CALVAN / Associated Press June 21, 2023 6 min read

NEW YORK (AP) — Outside a Harlem subway station, Yusef Salaam, a candidate for New York City Council, hurriedly greeted voters streaming out along Malcolm X Boulevard. For some, no introductions were necessary. They knew his face, his name and his life story.

But to the unfamiliar, Salaam needed only to introduce himself as one of the Central Park Five — one of the Black or Brown teenagers, ages 14 to 16, wrongly accused, convicted and imprisoned for the rape and beating of a white woman jogging in Central Park on April 19, 1989.

Now 49, Salaam is hoping to join the power structure of a city that once worked to put him behind bars.

“I’ve often said that those who have been close to the pain should have a seat at the table,” Salaam said during an interview at his campaign office.