CELEBRITY CHEF ANTHONY BOURDAIN HAS DIED AT THE AGE OF 61 FROM
AN APPARENT SUICIDE.
HE WAS DISCOVERED IN HIS HOTEL ROOM AND
FRANCE AND HE WAS ACTUALLY IN FRANCE TO TAPE AN EPISODE OF HIS
HIT CNN SHOW PARTS UNKNOWN.
ERIC RIPERT, A CELEBRITY CHEF
WHO WAS ALSO A GOOD FRIEND OF HIS APPEARED WITH BOURDAIN ON
SEVERAL OF HIS SHOWS AND FOUND HIM UNRESPONSIVE.
THAT WAS THE REACTION OF A LOT
OF PEOPLE ALTHOUGH THOSE WHO
WERE EXTREMELY CLOSE TO HIM SAID THAT IT DID SEEM AS THOUGH
THINGS WERE A LITTLE OFF AND BEFORE WE GET INTO MORE DETAILS
OF THE STORY I WANT TO EMPHASIZE FOR ANYONE WHO IS WATCHING,
ANYONE WHO MIGHT BE STRUGGLING WITH MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES,
DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, PLEASE GET HELP.
YOU ARE NOT ALONE.
A LOT
OF PEOPLE ALL OF THE WORLD ARE SUFFERING FROM THIS AS WELL AND
THERE IS THE NATIONAL SUICIDE PREVENTION LIFELINE IF YOU WANT
TO CALL AND GET HELP.
IT IS 1-800-273-8255.
THIS HAS BEEN A REALLY HARD STORY FOR ME AND I HAVE NEVER
RESPONDED OR REACTED THIS WAY TO THE PASSING OF A CELEBRITY, BUT
ANTHONY BOURDAIN HAD A HUGE IMPACT ON MY LIFE AND I AM NOW
LEARNING ON THE LIVES OF OTHER PEOPLE AND IT IS A STATING
STORY.
VERY RESPONSIBLE, IT IS WEIRD, HE CHANGED VIEWED
TELEVISION BUT IT IS NOT LIKE FOOD TELEVISION, HE CHANGED A
LOT OF THE ROLE THAT FOOD PLAYS IN A LOT OF PEOPLE'S LIVES NOW,
CAN TRACE DIRECTLY BACK TO HIS AFFECT ON IT.
USED TO BE, I
WORK IN TELEVISION SO I USED TO BE, COOKING SHOWS WERE JUST
PEOPLE YELLING BAM AND THROWING SPICE ON THINGS.
HE CHANGED IT.
HE
HAD A VOICE, A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH NOT JUST THE
FOOD BUT THE CHEFS AND THE PEOPLE BEHIND IT AND CULTURE,
PART OF CULTURE IS FOOD, BUT HE BROUGHT OTHER PARTS OF CULTURE
INTO THE DISCUSSION OF FOOD AND BROUGHT FOOD INTO THE OTHER
PARTS OF THE DISCUSSION OF CULTURE AND WE DO THAT NEW SHOW
THAT'S ON TODAY AND THERE IS ONE SEGMENT IN PARTICULAR WHERE I AM
DOING AN IMPRESSION.
IT SUCKS.
I AM DOING AN IMPRESSION OF HOW
HE TALKS ABOUT FOOD, I AM TALKING ABOUT DRINKS AND IT
IS WEIRD.
IT IS REALLY INTENSE AND SO UNEXPECTED.
IT IS A GUY WALKING AROUND MAKING, TALKING ABOUT THE
URGENT.
THAT IS HOW SUICIDE PLAYS OUT.
IT'S NEVER REALLY WHAT
ANYONE EXPECTS AND FOR ME EVER SO SHOCKING BECAUSE WE ARE, IN
ONE WEEK, WE HAVE HAD TWO DEATHS AMONGST, IN WHITE COMMUNITIES
WITH PRIVILEGE, WITH ACCESS, WITH HEALTHCARE AND I JUST WANT
TO THINK ABOUT THE FACT OF WHAT IS HAPPENING IN OUR MARGINALIZED
COMMUNITIES AND WHAT IS BEING UNSEEN AND I KNOW BEING FROM A
SOUTH ASIAN COMMUNITY, I AM TALKING ON BEHALF OF THE BLACK
AND BROWN COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE, WE'VE A LOT OF STIGMA AROUND
MENTAL HEALTH AND WE DON'T GET HELP WE'RE DEEP BECAUSE WE'RE
ALWAYS TOLD TO BE MORE POSITIVE, PERK UP, YOU CAN GET THROUGH IT,
PUSH THROUGH BUT REALLY, IT IS SUCH A HUGE HEALTH ISSUE BUT
ACCESSIBILITY IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS IN THE BLACK AND
BROWN COMMUNITY.
HOW ARE WE GOING TO HELP THEM PUSH THEIR
BECAUSE THESE ARE PEOPLE WITH PRIVILEGE.
THEY HAD EVERYTHING.
AND YET, THEY HAD TO GO THIS WAY.
TWO THINGS THAT I WANT TO MENTION THAT I THINK NEED
TO BE DISCUSSED AND IT NEEDS TO BE A LITTLE BIT MORE WIDESPREAD.
EVERYONE KEEPS TALKING ABOUT, THIS IS SO UNEXPECTED, SAME
WITH KATE SPADE, HER LIFE SEEMS SO PERFECT, HIS LIFE SEEMS
SO PERFECT.
HE HAD IT ALL, HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN?
I WANT TO EMPHASIZE THAT PEOPLE'S PUBLIC LIVES AND WHAT
YOU SEE ON SOCIAL MEDIA IS NOT REPRESENTATIVE OF WHAT IS REALLY
HAPPENING IN THEIR LIVES.
IT IS JUST NOT.
I REMEMBER IN 2016,
JUST GOING BACK TO WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT STIGMA.
IT WAS A VERY
DIFFICULT TIME FOR ME PERSONALLY AND IT WAS THE FIRST TIME I
DEALT WITH DEPRESSION AND SEVERE ANXIETY AND I OPENED UP ABOUT IT
ON THE SHOW AND I DID NOT EXPECT PEOPLE TO RESPOND TO ME WITH
GRATITUDE BECAUSE OF THE STIGMA.
I GET ATTACKED ALL THE TIME, SO
I KIND OF SHARE THINGS ABOUT MYSELF WITHOUT CARING WHAT OTHER
PEOPLE ARE GOING TO THINK ARE WORRYING ABOUT IT.
THAT IS MY
PRIVILEGE, NOT HAVING NOT WORRY BUT I HAD NO IDEA THAT
PEOPLE FELT LIKE THEY COULD NOT TALK ABOUT THEIR MENTAL HEALTH
ISSUES, THAT THEY COULD NOT OPEN UP AND SEEK THE HELP THAT THEY
NEED BECAUSE THEY WERE WORRIED THAT THEY WOULD BE STIGMATIZED.
PLEASE DON'T WORRY ABOUT THAT STIGMA.
WE NEED TO HAVE OPEN CONVERSATIONS ABOUT DEPRESSION.
A LOT OF PEOPLE SUFFER FROM IT AND IT DOES NOT MATTER HOW
SUCCESSFUL SOMEONE IS OR HOW PERFECT SOMEONE'S LIFE
APPEARS TO BE, PEOPLE HAVE REAL STRUGGLES BEHIND-THE-SCENES.
OR HOW FUNNY PEOPLE ARE.
I SUFFER FROM DEPRESSION AND
CLINICAL DEPRESSION, MY MOM HAS INTEGRAL DEPRESSION AND WHEN I
TALK ABOUT IT, TO ME IT WAS A REALLY SAD STORY TO READ
SPECIFICALLY ABOUT, BECAUSE OF THE TIMES THAT WE ARE IN.
THERE
ARE SO MANY PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE SPOTLIGHT THAT ARE USING IT TO
DIVIDE US AND WHEN WE LOSE SOMEONE WHO ACTUALLY USES THEIR
PLATFORM TO UNITE US AND TO HIGHLIGHT OUR DIFFERENCES AS
POSITIVES, IT REALLY DOES FEEL LIKE A LOSS BECAUSE ALL THE
HEADLINES ARE ALWAYS LIKE, DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS AND IT
HAS BECOME SO FASHIONABLE FROM EVERYBODY TO JUST SAY I BELONG
TO THIS GROUP, THAT GROUP IS WRONG, JUST TO HAVE PEOPLE LIKE
THIS WHO ARE ALLIES TO PEOPLE FROM OUR BLACK AND BROWN
COMMUNITIES THAT GO HIGHLIGHT OUR CULTURE AND SAY THIS IS
GREAT FOOD BRINGS US TOGETHER, I AM A LITTLE BIT SHOOK BY A. I
HAVE BEEN HAVING MY OWN BOUT OF DEPRESSION AND I WILL TELL YOU
AS A STANDUP COMEDIAN, PEOPLE DON'T EVER THINK THAT WE ARE
DEPRESSED AND WE ARE SOME OF THE MOST DEPRESSED PEOPLE ON THE
PLANET WHICH IS WHY WHICH IS TO MAKE PEOPLE LAUGH BECAUSE THAT
MAKES US FEEL BETTER, BUT MONEY, FAME, HIS MOM TALKED ABOUT HIM
AND SAID HE HAD SO MUCH MONEY AND HE WAS SO SUCCESSFUL.
THOSE
DO NOT FILL THE VOID THAT YOU HAVE WHEN YOU HAVE MENTAL
ILLNESS AND THE STIGMA IT IS.
I REMEMBER TELLING MY MOM THAT I
FELT DEPRESSED AND SHE WOULD SAY YOU ARE NOT CRAZY, DON'T SAY
THAT.
THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH YOU, IT'S CHEMICAL, IT IS
NOTHING I CAN SNAP OUT OF AND IT IS SOMETHING THAT MAKES ME
SOMETIMES NOT WANT TO GET OUT OF BED AND I HAVE BEEN ON THE SHOW
AND BEEN DEPRESSED AND PEOPLE ARE LOOKING AND SAYING WHAT'S
WRONG WITH HER, WISER NOT COMBED.
IT IS BECAUSE I HAD TO
STRUGGLE TO GET OUT OF BED AND JUST BEING HERE WITH YOU GUYS
WILL KEEP ME GOING JUST ANOTHER MOMENT, SO I WILL SAY TO YOU
BLACK AND BROWN YOUNG PEOPLE AND I'M SPEAKING TO EVERYONE, BUT
SPECIFICALLY THOSE OF US WHO COMES FROM THOSE COMMUNITIES
WERE PEOPLE TELL YOU THAT IT IS SOMETHING YOU CAN JUST GET OVER,
AND YOU ARE DEALING WITH ISSUES, GO OUTSIDE OF YOUR VILLAGE IF
YOU NEED TO AND GO FIND THE HELP THAT YOU NEED BECAUSE THERE
ARE A LOT OF MEASURES OUT THERE TO HELP YOU AND IT DOES NOT
ALWAYS HAVE TO BE MEDICATION.
THAT WAS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY I GOT A DOG AND HE REALLY
HELPED ME, BUT IT IS DIFFERENT.
I LOVE THAT YOU MENTIONED
CLINICAL DEPRESSION.
THERE ARE DIFFERENT TYPES OF DEPRESSION.
FOR SOME PEOPLE IT IS A CHEMICAL, PHYSICAL PROBLEM AND
IT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED AND SO IT DOES NOT MEAN THAT THERE'S
ANYTHING WRONG WITH YOU, AGAIN, WE NEED TO HAVE OPEN, HONEST
CONVERSATIONS ABOUT IT.
IF YOU ARE A PUBLIC FIGURE WHO IS
SUFFERING FROM DEPRESSION, YOU HAVE THE ABILITY TO LESSEN THE
STIGMA BY COMING FORWARD AND TALKING ABOUT WHAT YOU HAVE
DEALT WITH AND GOING BACK TO WHAT WE WERE DISCUSSING IN
REGARD TO ANTHONY BOURDAIN TEACHING PEOPLE ABOUT CULTURE,
THAT IS THE REASON WHY THIS IS IMPACTED ME PERSONALLY.
I DID
NOT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HIM AND TELL ABOUT 2017, I'M SORRY 2007.
AT THAT TIME, I WAS FRESH OUT OF COLLEGE, HAD NO INTEREST IN
THE WORLD AROUND ME AND WHAT I MEAN BY THAT IS I THOUGHT
LA IS THE BEST PLACE IN THE WORLD, WHY WOULD I WANT TO
GO ANYWHERE ELSE?
I HAD NOT TRAVELED OUT OF THE COUNTRY GET ONE OF MY GOOD
FRIENDS WAS ABOUT GO TO EUROPE AND SHE INVITED ME.
I SAID NO,
WHY WOULD I SPEND MONEY TO GO ANYWHERE ELSE I LOVE IT HERE.
AT THAT TIME I STARTED WATCHING HIS SHOW AND HE SPARKED THIS
CURIOSITY IN ME AND JUST SEEING HIM SHARE OTHER CULTURES AND HOW
BEAUTIFUL THE WORLD AROUND US REALLY IS, I WAS OBSESSED WITH
THE SHOW DIED THAT TIME HE HOSTED A SHOW CALLED NO
RESERVATIONS ON THE TRAVEL CHANNEL AND EVERY MEMBER CALLING
MY FRIEND UP AND SAYING I AM GOING TO EUROPE WITH YOU AND I
WAS A FIRST TIME THAT I TRAVELED AND I STARTED REALLY TAKING IN
OTHER CULTURES AND APPRECIATING THEM.
I WANTED TO SHARE A VIDEO
OF ANTHONY BOURDAIN.
ONE OF HIS MOST RECENT VIDEOS ON CNN.
I'M ARMENIAN SO
OBVIOUSLY THIS IS AN EPISODE THAT MEANT A LOT TO ME
PERSONALLY, SO HERE IS HIS RECENT TRIP TO ARMENIA.
GENOCIDE.
THIS ISN'T ABOUT REVENGE, THIS IS ABOUT RECOGNITION.
WAR.
IF WE LOSE, WE KNOW THAT WE WILL BE DESTROYED, ANNIHILATED.
EARTHQUAKE.
I AM THE GENERATION WHICH REALLY LEARNED THE ALPHABET
WITH A CANDLELIGHT.
ARMENIA HAS ENDURED A LOT.
THIS IS SOME GEOPOLITICAL CONFLICT ON A MAP.
EVERY FAMILY IS TOUCHED.
EVERY DAY A 100 PEOPLE LEAVE ARMENIA.
BUT IT REMAINS A PLACE THAT MILLIONS OF ARMENIANS ARE
VERY, VERY SENTIMENTAL ABOUT.
I MYSELF, I WILL NEVER LEAVE ARMENIA.
I WAS BORN IN ARMENIA AND I WILL DIE HERE.
WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO ARMENIA, WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO
ARMENIA?
I'VE BEEN HEARING IT FOR YEARS.
FINALLY, I AM HERE.
HE WILL BE MISSED, TO SAY THE LEAST.