At her funeral service yesterday, human rights’ activist Zenita Nicholson was remembered for the contributions she made to helping others, though no one knew she too needed help.
Nicholson, 37, known as ‘Debbie’, who was cremated at Ruimzight, had been struggling with depression for a long time and in a suicide note she asked to be forgiven and said no one was to be blamed.
According to a cousin, Nirmala Raghunath, in the note she asked that they “let me go,” and said that she was “finally free of my pain.”
Raghunath said the mother of two hid her “hid her pain behind her beautiful smile and laughter.”
In the note too, she wanted family members to know that she gained courage from the people she helped.
She asked that they use her death to raise awareness of depression and mental health and for more services and resources to be made available.
Raghunath told Stabroek News that they did not recognize the signs that she needed help and she wished Nicholson had opened up to them so she could have “gotten the help she desperately needed.”
Former president Donald Ramotar remarked, “Even though she died at a young age she had shown such great promise. She lived a very short and useful life. She touched the lives of many and made important contributions.”
Ramotar said told the huge gathering that much, much more needs to be done about suicide.
In March last year, the United States Embassy presented Nicholson with the Woman of Courage Award in recognition of her work.
She was well known for fighting for the rights of the vulnerable but more for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community and was once the secretary to the board of the Sexual Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD).
She was also the Country Coordinator for the Caribbean Vulnerable Communities/PANCAP Global Round 9 Vulnerable Groups Project at the time of her death.
Director of PANCAP Dereck Springer lauded her for being a champion for LGBT where she addressed the stigma and discrimination that gay people face.
“She really tried to work with policy makers as well as gatekeepers, whether it’s the police, members of the public or the community or whether it is members of the media… so as to draw attention to this issue,” he said.
An aunt, Padmini Campbell was sad that “We lost Zenita to the illness of depression and not recognizing depression is one of our biggest problems.”
She said, “Stats have shown that at least one in 10 people commit suicide if they left their depression untreated.”
The woman told Nicholson’s children; Dimitri and Daria that what has happened had nothing to do with their mother’s love for them. According to her, “Depression must no longer be taboo. In Guyana and the rest of the world people think it’s a shame but it is not. People call you crazy but it is just like diabetes and heart disease, it requires the right treatment.”
