Alvin F. Poussaint, a psychiatrist known for his work on the impact of racism on Black mental health, died Monday at 90 in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. His wife, Dr. Tina Young Poussaint, confirmed his death.

Born in 1934 in East Harlem, New York, Poussaint graduated from Columbia College and earned a medical degree from Cornell University. He served as the southern field director for the Medical Committee for Human Rights from 1965 to 1967, providing care to civil rights workers in Mississippi. Later, he taught at Harvard Medical School and directed a psychiatric program at Tufts University Medical School.

Poussaint’s research focused on issues like grief, parenting, and violence, especially in Black communities. His 1972 book Why Blacks Kill Blacks examined how systemic racism affects Black mental health. He also co-authored Raising Black Children and Lay My Burden Down: Suicide and the Mental Health Crisis Among African Americans.

From 1984 to 1993, he was a consultant for The Cosby Show, ensuring accurate portrayals of Black families. He co-wrote Come On, People with Bill Cosby in 2007. Poussaint also pushed for the American Psychiatric Association to recognize extreme racism as a mental health issue.

In 1984, he co-chaired Jesse Jackson’s presidential campaign in Massachusetts. Poussaint received several honors during his career, including a New England Emmy in 1997 for his work on Willoughby’s Wonders. His wife and children survive him.