Lifetime Movie Network will premiere Surviving Compton, a biopic of singer, Michele’le’s experiences being affiliated with NWA and married to Dr. Dre, and then later, her relationship with Suge Knight. It was the story of abuse, debasement and violence against women that was scrubbed clean from the blockbuster, Straight Outta Compton.

Living on the periphery of Los Angeles, with relatives and friends near Compton, California, there was a lot about Dr. Dre and Suge Knight we knew about–it was the talk of the town. Suge Knight even dated a girl who worked for me when I was an assistant manager at a retail store in the Fox Hills Mall. We all knew Dr. Dre beat Michele’le’s ass, and I have to admit, no one in my circle was outraged on her behalf. Dre beating on somebody was just another Tuesday. Suge was no  better, and his level of sociopathy was legend.

I look back and am shocked at how neutral and accepting everyone was to know about her abuse–how numb we all were about it. At that particular time in my life, I was almost completely affiliated with African American people, and not one of my friends, family, or cohorts thought there was anything criminal about “beating on some hoes.”

Now I will vicariously relive Michele’le’s story with the scales off, and really SEE how horrific the abuse was, and how normalized it all was. Even Michele’le herself seems to be numb about the whole thing. Take a look at this interview, and the hosts siding with Suge’s awful behavior after he slapped her so hard he dislocated her jaw. It’s truly disgusting, and the way all involved react pretty much sums up how OKAY the black community is with woman beating.

Now here’s my take on all of it…

https://youtu.be/jFW4QNYvNkg