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John,
In 1989, my son Yusef and four other teenagers — Raymond Santana, Korey Wise, Kevin Richardson, and Antron McCray (now known as the Exonerated Five) — were wrongly accused of attacking and raping a woman who was jogging in New York City’s Central Park.
They were just scared kids when they were subjected to hours of relentless questioning, during which detectives repeatedly lied to them to try to get them to confess. Eventually, they were all wrongly convicted and incarcerated. The case made headlines across the country after Donald Trump took out full-page ads in the city’s major newspapers calling for the return of the death penalty and people began sending my family death threats.
It was a truly horrific thing to go through for all of us. Watching as my teenage son was ripped away from me for a crime he didn’t commit — it’s something no mother should have to go through. And that’s why I’m so glad that an organization like the Innocence Project exists.
Their work saves the lives of people like my son, and we’ve got to continue to support them. So I’m asking you, in honor of Mother’s Day, to make a matched donation to the Innocence Project to help make sure other moms don’t have to endure the pain of losing a child to wrongful incarceration.
Yusef and his mom, Sharonne Salaam, at the unveiling of the Gate of the Exonerated. (Image: Jeenah Moon/Innocence Project)
For a limited time, the Segal Foundation is matching all donations to the Innocence Project up to $30,000 — so this is a great opportunity to double your impact on this vital work.
When Yusef was wrongly arrested and convicted, my life completely changed. I dedicated every moment to advocating for my son. Even though public opinion was against him, I stayed by his side every step of the way — like I think any mom would. He and the other men were finally exonerated by DNA evidence in 2002 and it felt like an enormous weight was lifted off my shoulders.
But I soon began to think of the other families, the other mothers, going through what we went through and I knew my work wasn’t finished. So I, along with other family members of wrongly convicted individuals, started an organization called Justice 4 the Wrongfully Incarcerated. Every day, we work to create and promote statewide legislation that provides compensation, education, and other support to help wrongly imprisoned people rebuild their lives upon release. Most recently, we celebrated a historic victory with the unveiling of the “Gate of the Exonerated” in Central Park. It honors my son and the other members of the Exonerated Five while also serving as a physical reminder to not let history repeat itself. Doing this work every day,
advocating for families who are going through what my family went through, has truly been a privilege.
And I’m incredibly grateful to the Innocence Project for all of the support they’ve shown me, my family, and countless others over the last 30 years. Their annual gala is happening tomorrow and I’m proud to say that they’ll be highlighting my advocacy work — but I also want to take the opportunity to say that this work is both necessary and irreplaceable, and I’m honored to work with them in this space.
Please, make sure they can continue helping families like mine for years to come by making a donation before Mother’s Day — all donations up to $30,000 will be matched, so double your impact today.
Thank you so much,
Sharonne Salaam |
