Lance Reddicks Death Is Another Sign That Black Men Are Dying Too Young

Celebrities die just like the rest of us. When it happens, we commiserate collectively and pour out our hypothetical (and maybe literal) glasses for the deceased in honor of however they connected with us in their profession.

When I heard about Lance Reddicks death , there was something else something Ive felt before, recently and frequently: a sense of internalized dread.

Reddick, known for his roles in The Wire, the John Wick franchise and the popular Destiny video games, died of natural causes nomenclature that confounds many of us who dont believe that 60-year-olds die naturally, which simply means that no external factors contributed directly to his death. 

Natural causes doesnt comfort me considering Reddick joins an exhausting, morbid procession of famous Black men who have died too young and, in many cases, unexpectedly. Just last month, De La Souls Trugoy the Dove died at age 54 after years of battling congestive heart failure, mere weeks before the groups classic oeuvre finally reached another generation of listeners by hitting streaming services . 

There was Coolio, who died of a heart attack in September at 59 . There was Black Rob, who died of cardiac arrest at 51 in 2021 . There was Virgil Abloh, who died in 2021 at 41 (my current age) after a private battle with cancer . There was Michael K. Williams  (54), DMX  (50), Gift of Gab  (50), MF Doom  (49), John Singleton (51) and Chadwick Boseman (43).

Unfortunately, I could go on.

I dont believe Death has bias: Anyone can get it after they open their eyes in the morning (and even if they dont). But it seems that Black icons are leaving a lot younger than their peers of other races. Its taxing on our psyche: Seeing these celebrity deaths play out with men who are around my age makes me examine my own mortality were all on the clock, but I think about it more often than is probably healthy.  

External physical appearance never tells the full tale in ones health, but its doubly sobering how good some of these men looked at the time of their death. Reddick was chiseled every time he took his shirt off on television and frequently shared his workouts on Instagram. Regardless of how you feel about the dude, Kevin Samuels, the controversial YouTube self-proclaimed relationship guru, didnt look like he would succumb to death by hypertension at 53 following a career of invidious remarks about the health of Black women. 

It underlines why, even with my own obsession with exercise, I need to work harder than my white counterparts in all aspects of my life to stay above ground. The men on my mothers side of the family are prone to heart attacks it claimed my grandfather when he was barely a decade younger than me, and my cousin was a decade younger than me when he passed at 26. Fortunately, I have a mama who stays on my ass about my metrics. 

Even more than watching celebrities go, Im haunted when my peers on social media post about the sudden loss of their parents. My dad, who fortunately has achieved an I-dont-give-a-shit zen in retirement to which I could only aspire has exceeded life expectancy by making it to 73 as a Black man in America; part of me always wonders if the next time I see him will be the last time Ill ever see him. 

The issue with Black men and health in America is categorically more nuanced than I can capture in this piece. As someone with a father wholl only visit a doctor if something is dangling from sinews, I recognize intimately the complicated relationship Black men have with the health care industry. 

Considering our historical and still-existing mistreatment , the unrelenting unaffordability of quality health care and the fact that there simply arent nearly enough Black medical doctors to make us feel comfortable, Chris Rocks pour some Tussin on it routine was the equivalent of laughing through tears. 

Just the same, there are truisms worth acknowledging: Historically, Black people as a whole are on the bottom rung of health benefits in America, which is reflected in our lower life expectancy in comparison with everyone except the Native American population.

In that, Black men still have a shorter life expectancy than Black women. Even when Black men are winning in the game of life, were still losing in the game of health, and were the only demographic in America for whom homicide cracks the top five in causes of death. Turns out you cant out-earn or out-educate systemic racism, and were more likely than any other demographic in America to leave the mortal coil for simply walking up the wrong street at the wrong time.

But Black men dont need statistics to know that we need a heightened sense of awareness just to exist; that interminable feeling of stress is the connective tissue to many of our other maladies. I considered this last week when I was sitting on the patio of an outdoor coffee shop, writing for this publication, in a posh Miami neighborhood when a police officer approached to speak to me through my headphones. Turns out he was just being friendly, but I wonder how many ticks he took off my life when my heart jumped during his approach.

On that note, the health of Black men is certainly not just a physical issue: Ive never witnessed the public so taken aback by a suicide like I did that of 40-year-old Stephen tWitch Boss in December   likely because were not programmed to believe anyone constantly smiling, dancing and getting paid to do so would want to leave. But as hesitant as Black men are about therapy, I havent encountered a group who could use it more. 

Im not here with easy answers, because everything suggests that they dont exist. I can only implore you, Black men, to figure out some idea whats going on inside of you upstairs and downstairs so you can tackle problems before they happen. Try to find medical doctors who look like you . Keep an eye on organizations working to narrow the health care disparity gap. And pleasedont forget about your mental health (fortunately, its easier to find Black therapists).  

The war for our health is a silent one we fight every day. Even if theres so much you can do, do what you can because the Lance Reddicks, the John Singletons and the Chadwick Bosemans of the world dont go without taking pieces of us with them.