It has been said that work can continue to precede
a person even in death. Such is the case of gangsta rap pioneer Eric "Eazy-E"
Wright and the launch of a new charity, EazyStreetkids.
Founded by Tracy Jernagin, the organization was founded for the simple purpose of raising
money to fund underprivileged youth and the local school system, a path that
Eazy was not fortunate enough to go down.
"I founded this company to carry on a lot
of the philanthropic efforts that he was involved in and things he had already
begun to do before he passed away," Jernagin told AllHipHop.com. "So,
myself and our daughter Erin Wright founded the organization. What we are going
to do is give back to the Compton community."
Jernagin hopes to see EazyStreetkids become successful
enough to build a performing artist school in honor of Eazy in the Compton community.
"The kids [could] have that outlet and that
opportunity for their talents to flourish. Instead of coming to an event here
and there, they have something that their community will be proud of."
Eric “Lil E” Wright Jr. agreed and said that in addition to his
own fledgling rap career, he would put his best efforts behind making the charity
a success.
"He opened doors for a lot of people, man,"
Lil E said. "Everybody that’s a gangsta rapper knows it started with him.
He’s the godfather of that and a lot of people forget it. I’m trying to keep
his name at the forefront."
In 1995, the unfortunate announcement was made
that he had contracted HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
Only one month after making that fateful announcement,
Eazy-E would succumb to the dreaded disease.
"We are trying to show that although he’s
not here, his offspring are still trying to carry out his work," Jernagin
said. "They all have different mothers, but they are still brothers and
sisters and they are a whole. They have the same agenda."