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Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
National
Mariah Rush

Black Cook County residents face scarcity of mental health resources as their suicide rates remain high after the pandemic

Rafiah Maxie-Cole (left) holds a photo of her son, Jamal Clay, and Valencia Sagnia shows a portrait of her brother, Marquist Spivey, both of whom died by suicide. The women have each started mental health programs that offer education and support targeting Black communities among others. (Pat Nabong/Sun-Times; Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times)

For years, Valencia Sagnia and her 13 siblings — along with their parents and their growing families — have met at their childhood home every Friday to eat dinner and play cards.

But after one seemingly joyful get-together nearly a decade ago, Sagnia received a call from the fiancée of her younger brother that she had just seen hours earlier. Marquist Spivey, dubbed “Kiki” by loved ones, had died by suicide — at 32.

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