Calls to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline tripled after this powerful Grammys performance
(Photo by LogicVEVO/YouTube)
Calls to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (NSPL) tripled after a powerful Grammys performance by the musician Logic.
The American rapper performed his song 1-800-273-8255, the actual NSPL phone number after it was nominated for multiple Grammy awards.
(Photo by LogicVEVO/YouTube)
The NSPL reported that in the two hours following Logic’s performance in January, they answered three times more calls than usual.
The music video follows a young black boy in the US coming to terms with his sexuality.
He considers taking his life after his family and friends find out that he is gay and he is rejected by them.
However, he is helped by his sports coach who feeds him after he leaves home and talks to his parents to help them come around to the fact that their son is gay.
The coach persuades him to reach out to NSPL and his life eventually turns around, with the powerful video ending in the man happily marrying his partner.
The day the song was released, the NSPL saw their second-highest call volume.
Frances Gonzalez, the director of NSPL, said that the rapper was doing important work by raising awareness about depression and suicide.
“Logic demonstrated on a global scale that healing is happening every day for people in crisis and that there is help available,” Gonzalez said.
(Photo by LogicVEVO/YouTube)
People celebrated the performance online for being groundbreaking in the way that mental health is talked about in the entertainment industry.
“I respect Logic so much for singing about suicide on the world’s stage. Seeing the survivors gets me every time. End the stigma,” one person wrote.
Another added: “Shoutout to Logic for raising awareness for mental health and #SuicidePrevention at the #Grammys! As a suicide survivor and #mentalhealth advocate, I appreciate seeing #MentalHealthAwareness on a national level!”
Suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in the US, with an estimated 123 people taking their lives every day.
LGB teens are four times more likely to be suicidal than their straight friends.
The research in the Journal of Adolescent Health investigated how sexual orientation and traumatic experiences affect suicidal feelings and attempts in teenagers.
The study asked questions to 5,000 students from 97 high schools in Nevada, United States.
A risk of suicide was linked with childhood experiences of trauma, known as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).
These traumatic experiences included sexual assault, domestic violence and physical harm from a parent.
The study discovered that LGB people without traumatic experiences were four times more likely to be suicidal or have attempted suicide than their heterosexual peers.
The study also found that LGB and questioning people were more likely to have experienced trauma or significant upset in their childhoods.
Over 50% of LGB students said they had been through two or more traumatic incidents, compared to around 25% of heterosexual students.
A study conducted by the National Centre for Transgender Equality in 2016 found that of the 17,715 transgender people surveyed, 40% had attempted suicide.
Suicide is preventable. Readers who are affected by the issues raised in this story are encouraged to contact Samaritans on 116 123 (www.samaritans.org), or Mind on 0300 123 3393 (www.mind.org.uk). Readers in the US are encouraged to contact the National Suicide Prevention Line on 1-800-273-8255.
