Thirty-one years ago, five teenagers from black and hispanic backgrounds were arrested by police, interrogated for at least seven hours, before confessing they took part in the assault of Trisha Meili. All, except Yusef Salaam.

It was the beginning of what many have called “the crime of the century” and the birth of the Central Park Five.

Since then, they have been jailed, Donald Trump has campaigned to have them executed, acquitted and awarded a $41m settlement.

Yusef Salaam joins Dermot Murnaghan along with author Ibi Zoboi to talk about their novel, Punching the Air, written not to fuel anger or create an uprising, but to shed light on the injustice.

Listen to the Daily podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker

Punching the Air, Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam, published by HarperCollins Children’s Books

Credits:
Daily podcast team:
Podcast producer – Annie Joyce
Podcast producer – Nicola Eyers
Interviews producers – Oli Foster
Interviews producers – Tatiana Alderson
Interviews producers – Megan Coutts
Archive – Simon Windsor
Music – Steven Wheeler

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