On Sunday afternoon, 90 white balloons were released into the sky as part of the Out of the Darkness Walk for suicide prevention. The balloons held messages written to loved ones who died by suicide.
The walk benefits the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention with the goal of reducing the annual suicide rate by 20% by 2025. The AFSP partnered with local and on-campus mental health organizations to sponsor the Out of the Darkness Walk in the Grove. This is the fourth year that the walk has taken place in Oxford.
Quarles Agnew, a senior, lost her father to suicide in January 2016. She spoke before the walk, emphasizing the effects of suicide and how those present are helping to make a difference.
“By participating in this walk, you are committed to making a change,” Agnew said.
Agnew’s story is the reason that Julia Plauche, a senior and this year’s walk coordinator, initially got involved with the Out of the Darkness walk.
“Suicide is such a prevalent issue in today’s society, especially on college campuses,” Plauche said. “One of the greatest issues surrounding suicide and mental health more generally is that people do not talk about it enough. The hope is that with the continued conversation, participation in the walk and raising of funds, suicide rates will decrease, and fewer families will have to suffer the loss of their loved ones to suicide.”
Anna Bass, a student at the University of Georgia, also spoke about her experiences with suicide. She spoke about how she tried to take her own life, and the ways that she has overcome that point in her life.
“I think through being open and talking to others has been what’s best for me,” Bass said.
Bass said that the Bible verse Isaiah 41:13, “For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you,” has helped her.
In the United States, suicide is the second leading cause of death among 20-24 year olds. In Mississippi, suicide is the third leading cause of death among young adults aged 15-24. According to 2017 Centers for Disease Control data, one person dies by suicide approximately every 20 hours in Mississippi.
Before participants began their walk around campus, state Sen. Gray Tollison addressed the crowd, in part, to advocate for clarification of the parity law in Mississippi. The parity law effectively requires insurance providers to treat mental health and substance abuse issues the same way they treat physical health issues. In 2008, U.S. Congress passed the The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA), a similar law, but states have variable discretion to implement the law.
In 2019, Tollison introduced a bill to the state legislature aimed at clarifying the law and requiring Mississippi to adopt and implement all provisions of the MPHAEA, but the bill died in committee.
Pam Smith, a board member of AFSP Mississippi and a university employee, sang “Go Rest High on that Mountain” for her son, Scott, who died by suicide in May 2015. She said that joining the AFSP saved her emotionally.
“I do believe it will help those who are depressed and ready to take their life…It’s almost like counseling and finding tranquility to myself as well. I do believe it will help others to become involved,” Smith said.
Counselors from Communicare and the UCC, which were both sponsors of the event, were in attendance to speak with participants who may have been experiencing grief during the event.
Participants could sign up for the walk as individuals or as teams. Some signed up as teams and wore T-shirts to support and remember loved ones who died by suicide.
“The walk will help spread awareness for suicide prevention by keeping the conversation going about mental health in order to decrease stigma and help individuals who are struggling to know they are not alone,” Plauche said.
An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified Active Minds as a sponsor of the Out of the Darkness walk. The group raised money for the cause, but was not an official sponsor of the event.
