Some of you may have attended the screening of the documentary “The S Word” on Sept. 9 in the Performing Arts Center out of curiosity or for extra credit.
Those who experienced this film know that the “S” stands for “suicide,” which can be a tough topic to talk about, let alone watch a film about.
This screening was put on by the Sociology and Social Work Clubs.
Before the documentary started, Mandy Fauble, Ph.D., L.C.S.W., an adjunct professor of Social Work, took a moment so everyone could take out their phones and put in the suicide national hotline number (1-800-273-8255) because you never know when you’ll need it.
There were counselors present at the screening in case it became overwhelming for audience members.
It was very educational to watch the documentary and see how people feel and what they go through.
This was an especially important experience since September is National Suicide Prevention Month.
The documentary followed Dese’Rae Stage, a photographer who felt that there was no one talking about suicide attempt survivors. There is a stigma concerning this topic, and she wanted to break the silence.
She herself is a suicide attempt survivor, and she went on a mission to find other people like her.
During her search, she found many people of different races, sexual orientations and religions She wanted to show that anyone and everyone could have had a suicide attempt.
The documentary switched back and forth between different stories. After they told their stories, Stage tooks their photographs. Towards the end of the documentary, it showed this project on display.
The portraits were hanging in the gallery, and next to them were headphones with which you could hear the survivors sharing their stories.
After the documentary was over, there was a call for any questions from the audience.
There were a lot of great questions during this portion of the event, and it got people talking about what they can do to continue the discussion.
The documentary forced people to ask questions and not remain silent.
The screening was open to the public and free to view.
If you want to learn more about the documentary, visit theswordmovie.com.