Grief is an acute emotional, physical and cognitive response to significant loss.
A study from researchers Laurie A. Burke and Dr. Robert A. Neimeyer shows that grief in the Black community is compounded by systemic racism, higher mortality rates, historical trauma and general misconceptions about emotional expression. This disparity, known as the racial grief gap, contributes to the disproportionately high rates of prolonged grief in the Black community.
According to research by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), multivariable analysis found that Black Americans are twice as likely to experience prolonged grief disorder (PGD) as their white counterparts.
“Prolonged grief disorder (PGD) is a mental health condition in which a person experiences
intense, persistent grief that continues to significantly interfere with daily functioning long after
the loss has occurred,” said Rashad Mills, a licensed clinical professional counselor. “Individuals with PGD may have difficulty accepting death, experience overwhelming longing for the person they lost, feel emotionally numb, or struggle to find meaning and purpose without them.
“Unlike typical grief, which gradually becomes more manageable over time, prolonged grief remains severe and often requires professional treatment to help the individual heal,” continued Mills.
Despite being more likely to experience grief and PGD, Black people are still less likely to seek professional help according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). Mills explained that unresolved grief can contribute to anxiety, depression, sleep disturbances, relationship problems, substance misuse and physical health issues.
“Eventually unresolved grief can affect every aspect of a person’s life. Processing grief allows people to move toward healing rather than remaining emotionally stuck,” Mills noted.
While professionals describe the psychological effects of unresolved grief, community leaders see those struggles play out every day. Morgan Banks, a graduate of Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) and director of Sisters in Truth (S.I.T), expounded on how PGD can affect people differently.
“You can have a good day and your mood will just turn. It could look like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). It could look like you’re lethargic. It can look like you isolate yourself,” said Banks. “It can look like you overwork yourself, which a lot of Black people do when they don’t want to deal with the emotional effects of what has happened.”
Motivated by her own personal experiences with grief, Banks founded S.I.T in 2024. The organization’s mission is to create a community that serves Black women with resources and safe spaces for them to process their grief. Banks told the AFRO that communities like hers are essential.
“I think for Black people, community is how we survive. When we have people who look like us, that we feel comfortable around, we don’t feel the weight of the world on us,” explained Banks. “But when you’re by yourself, the weight of feeling like everyone’s out to get you is heavier.”
