Jimmy Jean-Louis, Haitian-French actor and model, says black nations prioritize the acquisition of wealth at the expense of care for one another.
The 51-year-old actor spoke in an interview with BBC Pidgin on mental problems among black people
Jean-Louis said that the growing body of evidence is a situation where blacks lose themselves due to lack of proper care for one another.
“We’re losing ourselves because we don’t care enough for ourselves. We don’t care for our people, we care for things, we care for money, we care for this and that. But we don’t care for people. For me, that’s probably the biggest issue. For me, the most important thing in life is us,” he said.
The actor who features in Kunle Afolayan‘s forth coming movie, Citation stressed that mental problems remain one of the the biggest issues facing black nations. The ‘Heroes’ star added that it is imperative for Africans to have paradigm shift in their view about life.
“When it comes to social issues I think they are all meaningful, but often in black nations, one of them that is neglected is mental problem,” he said.
“It’s easier to categorise people as crazy than trying to dig into what’s actually wrong with them. These people have gone through so much, the trauma is real.
“They need proper help but they are not going to get them because they are being judged. Just like if you are seek, you go to the doctor and you’re cured. But here, if you are sick in the head , there’s no place to go.”