The Face of Suicide

  Following the suicide of Robin Williams, may have taken to social media outlets sharing their shock and a collaborative, "he didn't look suicidal".  So I beg to ask you.......what does suicidal look like? We assume that the person channeling Eyor daily is the one that we must place on suicide watch.......but NO.  We do NOT truly know what is behind the smile at the coffee shop, the bubbly profile or uplifting posts, because we no longer go further than the surface.  We have obtained multiple tools in order to remain connected or regain connections with people.......YET we are no longer [truly] connected.

     Think about it.  How many times have you been TOO BUSY to listen to a friend or family member that has called you in distress?  How many times have you been more willing to sit around and lend a gossiping ear rather than a helping hand?  Do you know more about reality stars than your family?

     Yet when someone you know has decided that they can no longer fight their demons......you weep, you speak of great they were.  It is AFTER they are no longer, that the masses chime out, "they could have come to me", "I had no idea they were going through anything".  But there are no tears or thoughts of guilt.  The thought NEVER crosses one's mind that they offered no help… they simply added to another's issues.

      The news is becoming bombarded with tales of people, from young children to adults, taking their own lives.  Whether their depression is caused by an additional mental illness or bullying…..it’s becoming too common of an occurrence.  Bullying is nothing new, but the environment that is now permitting it to flourish and our lack of teaching children to deal with it is.

     Once again, we want to offer help, advice and compassion after the life light is no longer burning.  This helps NO ONE.  It simply perpetuates the feeling that a person is not worth anything until they are dead.  That they will not receive love and acceptance until they are a memory. 

    

  There is NO look of suicide.  There is NO WAY to look at someone and know the pain that is held beneath the surface.  You can hear someone’s pain when you LISTEN.  You can feel their pain when you CARE.  You cannot expect people to have the time to run to your aid while you are shutting them out.  Popularity does NOT take away a person’s pain.  It is very easy to sit in a room full of people that know of you and feel completely ALONE. 

     Money does NOT heal a person.  Even those with financial security have demons that convince them that they are not worthy.

     Understand that all of us need one another to survive.  You were not born to yourself…..you will never live to yourself…..you will not die to yourself.  No matter how much you try to convince yourself that (unless a twin, etc.) you are born alone….you are wrong.  You need at least your mother to be present.  No matter how much you try to believe that people can exist as an island…you are wrong.  You rely on thousands of people each day…whether you see them or even know their names.  Keep trying to convince yourself that you will die alone….WRONG.  You will be surrounded by many people.  You will need them to care for your remains, etc. 

    Therefore why shun another and increase their pain until it drives them into the grave?  Instead of looking for the face of suicide, realize that we are one unit.  All of our faces……the face of innocence….the face of age……all plausible faces of suicide.

#CrimingWhileWhite

    

Although it has been known for decades, a new trending topic on social media has people FINALLY saying aloud that the scales of justice are far from balanced.  From celebrities to the everyday man, tales of crimes that resulted in little-to-no consequences are being told.

     As I believe this is a GREAT thing and I hope that this purging leads to change; there are those that are placing a negative spin on the social media movement.  Why some have chosen to take the admissions (and virtually show of solidarity regarding the fact that division and hiding in the shadows helps NO ONE) as boasting.  Yes….there are people that think that those providing the dialogue that is long overdue are simply rubbing it in the face of black people.

     UGH!!!!!! Is there anything that we can NOT turn into a race war? Now, more than ever, we need to unite and use the information that is at our fingertips to invoke CHANGE.  Stop picking fights with those trying to join the war by your side and just work COLLABORATIVELY for the change that we need to SURVIVE!

     We are beyond the crucial brink that leads to genocide.  Look at this movement as evidence! The evidence that you have been waiting for to win your case.  For decades many have been called crazy or prone to exaggerate when they would point out the difference in treatment that they receive by officers of the law.  TODAY, you have been redeemed.  No longer are people willing to keep silent the dirty little secrets that permit the injustice to continue.

     No longer are we forced to battle ALONE.  No longer is ANYONE willing to turn a blind eye.  “White privilege” is being killed.  Do not stop the process by being so sensitive that you miss the armor and ammunition being delivered to your feet.  If you are quick to screenshot an argument or indecent conversation in order to expose and embarrass someone on social media…..use the confessions from the #CrimingWhileWhite movement just the same. 

      Embrace what is currently happening.  Embrace the fact that what was once underground is now above ground moving full steam ahead.  Rather than people just sitting around complaining and demanding change in their recliners…….they are united and fighting for change.  No more are people hiding how they feel.  It is NOT a secret that black, white, Asian and Indian are ENRAGED by the injustice that has molded this nation.  NO ONE is just keeping their disgust contained to their inner circle and waiting on another to demand reform.  People are taking to social media, the streets, politicians, and more.

     My question is…..Proponents of #CrimingWhileWhite, what are you doing to stop the unbalance? Complaining helps no one.  So what are you doing?