Many residents are still shaken after the passing of local resident, Dr. Junaid Hassim, this past Sunday evening (July 20). Junaid, a well-known clinical psychologist, was the head of the Department of Clinical Psychology at Weskoppies Hospital and also had a practice at the HS Ebrahim Centre on Bengal Str, Laudium. He was known for helping hundreds through their darkest hours. But now, a deeper sadness has set in, not just over his death, but over the silence that surrounded his final days. When Dr. Junaid needed help… too many went quiet. People are quick to ask questions after a tragedy. But maybe the real tragedy isn’t in the way someone died, it’s in the way we ignored them while they were still alive. Junaid didn’t hide his struggles. He spoke openly about his pain. But that honesty didn’t get him help. It got him judged. In this very community. In our streets. In our homes. In our Mosques. We keep pretending depression doesn’t exist. That strong men don’t cry. That moms must always cope. That teenagers must “snap out of it.” But right now, there are men crying in their cars before walking through the front door. There are mothers quietly battling panic attacks behind bathroom doors. There are teenagers just one more insult away from making the same decision Junaid did. We’re not losing people to suicide. We’re losing them to silence, to stigma. Enough! Our community must stop hiding behind whispered judgments and religious convenience. We’re calling on every leader, especially those in the Masjid, the Church, the Temple to stand up and speak out. Don’t preach from pulpits while pretending not to see the pain in front of you. We must build support, not secrecy. There should be zero judgment. Only care. If this story makes you uncomfortable, good. That means something inside you still feels. Let that feeling lead to positive action. Or we’ll be here again, writing about another tragic funeral.