Paris Jackson, the 15-year-old daughter of the late pop legend Michael Jackson, tried to take her own life on Wednesday. The young Jackson is reportedly “physically fine.”
TMZ reports Jackson left a suicide note before cutting her arm with a meat cleaver and taking a large number of Motrin pills. She also reportedly called a suicide hotline. The counselor called 911. After receiving stitches for the cut, she reportedly was placed under psychiatric supervision.
“Paris is physically fine and is getting appropriate medical attention,” Perry Sanders, an attorney for Paris' grandmother and guardian, Katherine Jackson, said in a statement. “Being a sensitive 15-year-old is difficult no matter who you are. It is especially difficult when you lose the person closest to you.”
Michael Jackson died in 2009 from a fatal dose of a surgical anesthetic during rehearsals for his London concert series, “This Is It.” He was 50.
Some believe the drama that continues around Michael Jackson’s death may be causing stress for his surviving daughter. Others point to the anniversary of her father’s death as a reason for the suicide attempt.
“People who feel no one understands them are vulnerable to wanting to join a beloved deceased parent or family member,” Dr. Ran Walfish, author of The Self-Aware Parent, told WENN. “Given Paris' personal circumstances and the anniversary of her father's death, she was a high-risk candidate for suicide.”
But some are suggesting Jackson’s suicide attempt is the fruit of being raised as a Jehovah Witness (JW). According to the DailyMail, in May, Jackson refused to follow her grandmother in preaching door-to-door, as is common in the JW faith.
“After years of going with her family around their Calabasas, Calif., neighborhood spreading the religion's message every Sunday, the 15-year-old and her brother, Prince Michael, 16, have decided to no longer participate,” the paper reports.
Richard Kelly, a director of the Advocates for Awareness of Watchtower Abuses (AAWA), an international nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness about concerns regarding the “high control” religion, says Jackson’s episode is characteristic of what happens to JW children.
“There is a high incidence of suicide attempts and cutting among JW children,” he says. “They’re told to go to all the meetings; they’re told Armageddon is coming; they’re told they need to go door-to-door to hand out materials. Kids with minds of their own develop problems with these demands and act out in various ways. Suicide attempts are not uncommon.”
