“In 2019, the Congressional Black Caucus Emergency Task Force on Black Youth Suicide and Mental Health sounded the alarm about concerning suicide trends among Black youth in their report, Ring the Alarm. This present report not only urges us to renew the urgent call to action but also to critically interrogate the socioecological factors and structures—including institutional racism—that contribute to suicide risk among Black youth and how those factors create significant barriers for researchers and implementors trying to save their lives.

The data are alarming—Black youth have the fastest-rising suicide rate among their peers of other races and ethnicities. Even more disconcerting, we may not have the full picture of how suicide deaths are impacting Black youth due to misclassification errors. In the 13-year period between 2007 and 2020, the suicide rate among Black youth ages 10–17 increased by 144%. Black boys ages 0–19 have more than twice the suicide rate compared to Black girls of their age group. In 2021, one in five Black high school students reported seriously considering attempting suicide in the past year. That same year, nearly 18% of Black high school students had made a suicide plan in the past year, and 15% reported attempting suicide. Nearly 1 in 20 needed medical attention as a result of their suicide attempt.”
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