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  • 2 days ago
"American Soul" chronicles Con Cornelius' humble beginnings when starting "Soul Train." He tragically took his own life, so ESSENCE asked the cast and Don's son about mental health in the Black community.
Transcript
00:00Since Don Cornelius took his own life, it's really sad, but we need to show things that are affecting our communities.
00:18I don't think we're doing enough to really talk about mental health.
00:22I mean, when my father committed suicide, it was my duty to talk about it.
00:27And people have really put their arms around me to be strong enough to talk about it because it's a very private circumstance.
00:37And it's been a veil of shame for quite some time.
00:40So I started the Don Cornelius Foundation in order to help grassroots organizations, you know, support people who are struggling with mental health and suicide.
00:53I think we need to start having more open conversations, not just on a mental level, but also on a spiritual level.
00:59A lot of times we substitute things and we don't tap in with people.
01:02Tap into people and see what they're going through.
01:04Even if it's just sitting down to have a conversation, taking someone out to coffee, you never know.
01:07We're going and understanding that it's a real, real thing.
01:10It's not just somebody who needs to go sit in the corner or needs a whooping.
01:13You know what I mean?
01:14Mental illness is very, very real.
01:16And the acceptance and understanding that therapy is necessary, sometimes even medication is necessary.
01:22But overwhelmingly what's necessary is a need and a sensitivity and a warmth and an embrace of the challenges of mental illness.
01:30Things like this, just acknowledging that black people do have mental health issues are a step in the right direction.
01:37The black community, I think recently we have seen more of a conversation about it.
01:41I hope that that conversation continues.
01:44I feel like it's still a big stigma for our community.
01:48I think that we are making strides.
01:49I personally have even gone to black girl therapy for myself.
01:54There's a website where you can find a therapist on there.
01:57I think it's an amazing website that has like a lot of women of color who are therapists.
02:00So you can feel comfortable with going to therapy with somebody who looks like you, which is really awesome.
02:06But no, I don't think we've done enough.
02:08I think there's always places to go with that.
02:14I don't believe it.
02:15I don't know.
02:16I think there's always places.
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