I had the chance to attend the 2025 Osaze Osagie Memorial Lecture to listen to Kevin Richardson, part of the “Exonerated Five” talk about his journey with mental health under the stress of racism and injustice.
Also known as the “Central Park Five,” in April 1989, Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Korey Wise, Raymond Santana and Yusef Salaam were wrongfully convicted of a brutal assault on a 28-year-old female jogger in Central Park.
At the time, the boys were between the ages of 14-16 years old. After prolonged periods of police interrogation, the five teenagers confessed to being involved in the attacks.
Richardson was 14 years old when he was arrested. During the trial, a forensic test said that a hair found on the victim was “similar” to Richardson’s hair.
When DNA evidence was reexamined years later, this was found to be incorrect. Richardson served five and a half years behind bars before being released.
The Osaze Osagie Lecture is named to honor the memory of Osaze Osagie, a former Penn State student who was shot and killed by local police in 2019 while experiencing a mental health event.
During this lecture, Richardson shared his journey on how to handle mental health in a conversation with Tim Barksdale, a clinical psychologist and past president of the Penn Psychological Association.
While Richardson still battles with PTSD to this day he has gotten a lot of help over the years from professionals, family and friends.
Growing up, Richardson had a happy and fulfilling childhood.
“We didn’t have much but we had each other,” Richardson said.
Richardson, the youngest of five, grew up surrounded by strong women — his mother, grandmother, and four older sisters. Their love and guidance shaped him, instilling deep respect and kindness. So he often wondered: why would the world assume he could ever harm a woman when everything he knew about love he learned from them?
In 2019, Netflix came out with a miniseries called “When They See Us” created by Ava DuVernay which takes you through the span of a quarter of a century from when the teens were first questioned about the incident in the spring of 1989, going through their exoneration in 2002 and ultimately the settlement reached with the city of New York in 2014.
Richardson encouraged the audience to watch this powerful series, emphasizing its importance in shedding light on police brutality and systemic racism.
This series was one of the most powerful, harrowing, and eye-opening I have ever seen.
While filming, Richardson recalled how difficult it was to relive his story when telling the actor that was playing him everything he needed to know to encapsulate his character fully and entirely.
While filming, Richardson reflected on the emotional challenge of reliving his story as he guided the actor portraying him, ensuring every detail encapsulated his experience fully and entirely.
While Richardson is not actively in therapy, he has been in the past and he advised the crowd how helpful it was, even though it took him years to trust and be vulnerable with any therapist.
“You don’t have to be an activist to be active,” Richardson said.
Richardson now works with young students in workshops that he created called “CPR” which stands for courage, perseverance and resilience, and this workshop teaches young students about civil rights and to know their rights.
“There was a time I didn’t receive CPR from the police officers, so now I’m giving CPR to the world,” Richardson said.
Richardson channeled his anger into activism, making a profound impact through his dedication to civil rights, human rights and inspiring others.
“If any time we need to come together, it’s now,” Richardson said in his final lecture remarks.
I am honored to have had the opportunity to listen to Richardson share his story, shedding light on the stigma surrounding mental health and how he has overcome challenges while helping others along the way.