Hello peeps, just a short entry today.

The news of the For Brown Girls blog creator, Karyn Washington’s untimely death sadly serves as a shocking reminder that things are not always what they seem. Karyn appeared to be a strong, confident woman but apparently, like many Americans of color, behind the scenes she had been battling with mental illness. Karyn created her blog to showcase the beauty of dark-skinned women and at the age of 22, she managed to serve as a role model for many young brown girls by helping them to understand that brown is indeed beautiful. Her death puts the spotlight on the issue of mental illness in the African-American community and other communities of color as well. Unfortunately in the Black and Hispanic community there is a stigma associated with mental illness and seeking help for issues such as depression is often discouraged. I remember as a child my dad telling me that mental illness was an “American” problem.

Hopefully a positive message can come out of this tragedy and people will begin to understand that getting help should not be seen as a sign of weakness, but rather as a sign of strength. The world doesn’t need any more senseless deaths like Karyn Washington.

Check out the News One article below for more information on her death:

Karyn Washington: For Brown Girls Creator Reportedly Commits Suicide | News One.