One woman show aims to help prevent suicides
SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) - This week two tragic high profile suicides involving national figures have put the spotlight squarely on this heartbreaking and somewhat confusing subject.
While suicide rates may fluctuate over time, it is far from a new phenomenon in our country. Now, a woman who once struggled with thoughts of taking her own life gives us a preview of how her upcoming one-woman show, in the hope of reaching those in need before they give up.
Meet 30-year-old Kershauna Johnson, or K.J., as we've known her for the last 12 years as a master control operator at KSLA.
But her smiles and friendly banter belie a much deeper, darker past; one of pain, suffering and suicide attempts.
"We suffer silently a lot," she said.
K.J. told us she slowly escaped the clutches of depression and suicidal thoughts through her art - multimedia art in her case - which she rehearsed for us.
She did so ahead of her one-woman show Saturday night at the Bossier Arts Council East Bank Theater. She described her primary goal for those who attend her show: "Just Me and My Emotions." and gets underway Saturday night, June 9 at 7 PM at the East Bank Theater inside the Bossier Arts Council.
That's located in the 600 block of Barksdale Boulevard in Bossier City.
Tickets cost $10 for pre-sale and $15 for general admission.
"I want them to own themselves," she said. "They are stuck in a dead-end job and been saying to themselves, 'I hate this place. I want to get out.' I want you to go into that place and really, really find and find out what it is you need to do to own you and go out into your best life."
Her show is a mixture of poetry and art to rap and song. Saturday will be her first time performing it — at least in front of others — not just in master control.
"You don't have to take your own life because in doing so that's going to hurt more people than just you."
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