VIP While Black: The True Story of a Black Woman’s Assault in the Liberal Town of Santa Cruz, CA

This concert was important to me for many reasons. Firstly, because the Grammy Award winning Bone Thugs-N-Harmony debuted as a fresh voice in hip-hop when I was in elementary school. I remember them vividly because they were so handsome, and each member was a different shade of brown. They dressed like thugs, but they had long natural hair, and they could harmonize and rap in a way that no one had ever heard before. They were also from Ohio, the birthplace and home state of my mom. My mother was a single mother university student with twins. And any child raised by a single parent beating the odds could relate to<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PArF9k2SbQk" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank"> Bone Thugs’ song First of the Month</a>. Not only was it a banger, but it also spoke to the realities of living from check to check, and needing food stamps (EBT cards) to make ends meet. Many days I watched my mom literally scrape coins together to make sure my twin-sister and I had everything we needed and wanted. The first of the month was when we could pretend for just a few days, that we weren’t stressed about lights being cut off, or enough food in the fridge. The first of the month was our time to temporarily live the American Dream. As a Cali born and bred woman, Bone Thugs’ music has always made me feel close to my midwest roots, and the perseverance it takes to rise through poverty and broken families. <a href="https://medium.com/acento-africano/vip-while-black-the-true-story-of-a-black-womans-assault-in-a-liberal-town-8ffb2f5131da">Visit Now</a>