Editor’s note: This story contains discussion about suicide. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
For Ineka Thomas, it was all so sudden.
Her son showed no signs of suicidal ideation, but when he called her in February 2024 and said, “he couldn’t live like this anymore,” her world changed forever.
Living three hours away, Thomas offered to make the drive — but it was too late.
“I remember the day of my son’s service. It’s a miracle I was able to stand up and talk,” Thomas said. “I let everybody know that my pain does have a purpose.”
Documentary participant Ineka Thomas speaks to audience members July 10 at a private screening of “Homicide and Suicide in the Black Community” July 10 at Arlington Church of God.
Thomas spoke after a private screening at Arlington Church of God of an Akron-focused documentary titled “Homicide and Suicide in the Black Community: The Impact of Trauma and Hopelessness.” Her interview was one of many that related the real-life impact of suicide and gun violence in Akron’s Black community.
Created by Gloria Ann Terry, CEO of Grace Academy of Small Wonders, the over one-hour-long documentary also describes how and why suicide and gun violence are so prevalent.
“We are here to collaborate and to work together on an issue that is pressing,” Terry said of the private screening.
Grace Academy of Small Wonders founder Gloria Terry introduces the documentary she co-produced, “Homicide and Suicide in the Black Community,” on July 10 at Arlington Church of God in Akron.
Akron officials participate in private screening
“Homicide and Suicide in the Black Community” documentary co-producer Keith Collins II speaks July 10 after a private screening of the film at Arlington Church of God in Akron.
Attending the screening were several participants from the documentary, members of the press, its two producers — Keith Collins II and Jim Wyno — and Akron leaders, including Mayor Shammas Malik and Deputy Police Chief Michael Miller.
Grace Academy of Small Wonders is an Akron faith-based nonprofit that mentors elementary, preteen and teenage girls on a range of topics, including mental well-being, social skills and spiritual awareness.
Terry said she plans to hold a public screening at House Three Thirty in October.
Akron Mayor Shammas Malik speaks July 10 after viewing the documentary “Homicide and Suicide in the Black Community” at Arlington Church of God in Akron.
Trauma takes center stage in the documentary
One woman featured in the film described her struggles with suicidal thoughts after realizing she couldn’t feed her daughter. It was an abyss of increasingly dark thoughts that led to a plan to kill her children, then herself.
As she was about to carry out her plan, a neighbor knocked on the door to check on her, she recalled in the film. That moment led her to seek help.
Survivors of all stripes shared their stories of suicide and gun violence in interviews with Terry. All were Akron residents or had Akron ties. Experts who work with children and teens described the impact of generational trauma dating back to slavery and the trauma of losing family and friends to suicide and violence.
The documentary challenged popular media, including music, which many experts and community members said portray Black people as hypersexualized and violent. This music, they said, influences young people to make dangerous decisions that can be fatal, only adding to their lived trauma.
One man described how, after he was shot during a dispute, he was paralyzed from the waist down. The incident left him traumatized, but it also made him popular among his peers. Only months or years later did he realize how it affected him, and how it tied into the media he consumed.
Suicide rates among Black Ohioans remain disproportionately high
Suicide rates have steadily increased over the years among nearly all Ohio populations, with Black-identifying people disproportionately facing the second-highest suicide rate by race in Ohio, next to White Ohioans, in 2022 to 2023.
U.S. Census data shows Black Ohioans make up 13.4% of the population, while White Ohioans are about 80%. Despite this difference, suicide rates among Black Ohioans are much closer to the rate of White Ohioans than any other population.
Suicide rates among Black Ohioans fell from 12.4 to 12.2 per 100,000 people in 2022 and 2023, according to the latest data from the Ohio Department of Health. Suicide rates fell among Black women from 5.3 to 5.0 and from 20.1 to 20.0 among Black men in the same years.
Suicide rates: The suicide rate in Summit ticked up while the state of Ohio ticked down, report shows
White Ohioans make up the vast majority of suicide deaths in Ohio and saw the rate drop from 16.1 to 15.7 per 100,000.
Summit County’s suicide rate for all populations in 2023 was 17 per 100,000 people, while the combined 2020 to 2023 rate was 15.6. Summit County recorded 12 more suicides in 2023 than in 2022, jumping from 80 to 92, the ODH reported.
Gun violence decreasing in Akron
Terry described how every year, there are dozens of shootings in Akron. In 2024, the Akron Police Department recorded 23 of 27 murders as shooting deaths.
The majority of homicide victims in Akron continue to be Black, which matches national figures tracked by the Violence Policy Center. The percentage of Black murder victims in Akron last year was 76%, up from 65% in 2023.
There were also 1,755 calls for shootings and shots-fired in 2024, down from 2,501 in 2023. Terry cited one specific incident that jarred Akron — the mass shooting in June 2024 that killed one and wounded at least 28 people.
2024 crime numbers: Akron homicides, murders in 2024 continue decreasing trend toward pre-pandemic levels
So, what’s the solution?
Documentary co-producers Keith Collins II and Gloria Terry hug July 10 after a screening of their film, “Homicide and Suicide in the Black Community,” at Arlington Church of God in Akron.
The documentary ends with a section on love, compassion and understanding, couched in the framework of religion and spirituality.
Many interviewees said parents, peers and family should tell kids and teens they are loved, hug them, be positive and hold them accountable for their actions.
For the counselors featured in Terry’s film, the solution is often positive outreach and advocacy with a focus on creating positive Black role models, media literacy, education and working with children.
Myron Lewis, a retired probation officer and substance abuse counselor, described the importance of professionals connecting with children and teens “by getting on their level.”
“I learned stuff about the kids I would never have learned otherwise,” he said after the film, describing how he took kids fishing to connect with them, allowing him to help them.
Bryce Buyakie covers courts and public safety for the Beacon Journal. He can be reached by email at bbuyakie@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @bryce_buyakie.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Documentary takes on epidemic of suicide, gun violence in Akron
