Over a week ago, we reported on an apparent suicide attempt by singer Tamar Braxton. There were rumors floating around that the singer and reality star was being pushed too far with her television contract, inability to own her own image as well as other factors.
Well, this past Thursday, the 43-year-old Braxton confirmed many of those rumors. She revealed in a lengthy statement posted on her Instagram that she had attempted suicide after suffering "pain" for the past 11 years while working in the entertainment industry as a reality star.
A few bright spots in the letter to her fans was that Tamar explained how she's on a "path to healing" following her recent hospitalization after she was found unresponsive in a hotel room earlier this month.
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"First and foremost, thank you," Braxton began, addressing her fans. "Thank you to each and every individual who has prayed for me, thought of me, sent me their love and has showered me with their support. In this present moment, it is my only responsibility to be real with myself and to be real with the ones who truly love me and care for my healing. I have without fail, shared with you my brightest days, and I know that sharing with you what has been my darkest will be the light for any man or woman who is feeling the same defeat I felt just only a week ago."
Tamar goes on to talk about how she got her and what her breaking point was.
"Over the past 11 years, there were promises made to protect and portray my story, with the authenticity and honesty I gave. I was betrayed, taken advantage of, overworked, and underpaid. I wrote a letter over 2 months ago asking to be freed from what I believed was excessive and unfair. I explained in personal detail the demise I was experiencing. My cry for help went totally ignored. However, the demands persisted. It was my spirit and my soul that was tainted the most. There are a few things I count on most to be, a good mother, a good daughter, a good partner, a good sister, and a good person. Who I was, begun to mean little to nothing, because it would only be how I was portrayed on television that would matter. It was witnessing the slow death of the woman I became, which discouraged my will to fight. I felt like I was no longer living, I was existing for the purpose of a corporations gain and ratings, and that killed me."
This was all evidenced by when Braxton renamed her twitter profile to say "Slave Tamar Braxton" over the past several weeks.
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She goes on to admit that, "Mental illness is real. We have to normalize acknowledging it and stop associating it with shame and humiliation. The pain that I have experienced over the past 11 years has slowly ate away at my spirit and my mental."
"It is only your prayers that have pushed me to rise above my own personal demise, pushed me to not only continue my fight for the freedom of my own thoughts, mind, and soul but to also use my voice and experience to be an ally for every black and brown person who has suffered from the continued exploitation of reality television. Reality TV personalities have no union, no coat of protection, no formal representation that protects our labor, our rights, or our voices. They promise us opportunity but produce exploitation, which has only developed a poor portrayal of black people in show business."
"I am learning to grow through my pain instead of looking for an escape. I'm on an irreversible path to healing, I am taking my time. It is of the utmost importance that I find my happy and my health, through professional treatment, for the sake of my whole heart, Logan, who I forgot in my moment of distress and desperation. And giving this journey my undivided attention. My rise will not be in vain. I will make it my mission to establish the initiative that fights for ethical business practices in reality TV, fights for the ownership of our businesses, promote growth and evolution of our stories, and gives us 100% equity in our freedom. My love and support system and everyone who chose to love me when I no longer loved myself, is infinite and I am forever grateful. I pray you will stand with me and be courageous enough to share your own truth."
Tamar is right. Mental illness is real in the Black community.
Overall, mental health conditions occur in Black and African American (B/AA) people in America at about the same or less frequency than in White Americans. However, the historical Black and African American experience in America has and continues to be characterized by trauma and violence more often than for their White counterparts and impacts emotional and mental health of both youth and adults. (See prevalence statistics below).
Historical dehumanization, oppression, and violence against Black and African American people has evolved.
According to the Mental Health Association of America, processing and dealing with layers of individual trauma on top of new mass traumas from COVID-19 (uncertainty, isolation, grief from financial or human losses), police brutality and its fetishization in news media, and divisive political rhetoric adds compounding layers of complexity for individuals to responsibly manage.
So we are praying and standing with Tamar in her healing. Just as we are standing with all others suffering from mental health issues. We love you and support you.
