Weekly News Roundup Dec. 2 – 8, 2023

Suicide Rates Have Risen Steadily for Black Girls and Women – US News
December 8, 2023
A new study from the US has found that suicide rates for Black women and girls ages 15 to 24 have more than double in the past 20 years.  “While the reasons why remain under investigation, it could be that cyberbullying and online racial attacks toward Black female youth may be on the rise in particular, and therefore interventions targeting certain stressors are particularly critical for young Black women,” senior study author Katherine Keyes. Suicide rates have been increasing for many demographics in the US.

Despite multiple deaths and pleas for action, ‘suicide promotion website’ still available in Canada – CBC
December 6, 2023
A website that has been labelled by mental health organizations as “dedicated suicide promotion” has yet to be banned in Canada, despite being linked to multiple suicide deaths. The site is restricted in Australia, Germany, Italy, and the UK. Two coroner reports from Quebec recommended that the CRTC restrict access to the site. “Individuals who would look for that kind of information are in their most vulnerable state and are easily persuadable into conducting acts of self-harm,” said Camille Quenneville, CEO of the CMHA’s Ontario division. The CRTC said that it “does not have the jurisdiction to order internet service providers to block particular websites,” while the Canadian Telecommunications Association has said that “Canadian carriers are prohibited from unilaterally controlling content unless approved by the CRTC or the courts.”

Suicides Don’t Actually Spike in Winter – TIME
December 5, 2023
This article explores the myth that suicide rates increase during the holiday season. Last year during this time, 40% of articles published by news organizations made this claim, and new survey results show that, of the 1500 American respondents, 81% thought suicides were highest during the holidays. Dan Romer, of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania who conducted the survey, says, “The recommendations for reporting on suicide emphasize that one shouldn’t make a point out of saying that any time of the year is more popular. There’s just no benefit for the public to hear that.”

Manitoba seeing spike in youth suicide rate – CTV News
December 4, 2023
A newly published report from the Manitoba Advocate for Children and Youth highlights several youth suicides in the past year. Sherry Gott, the Manitoba Advocate for Children and Youth, says, “Not being allowed to enter schools because of the pandemic and lockdown. I think just a culmination of that and the lack of resources in the area of mental health support. Seventy per cent of the suicides were in First Nations communities where there is a lack of support and service.” Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak Grand Chief Garrison Settee says more resources are needed to prevent youth suicide, and ” (Suicide) has a more profound impact on small communities. Everybody knows about it and everybody is affected by it. And its small communities that are isolated. We have to work with the educational system to make sure there is a program and there’s a strategy to make sure to address these things before they’re happening.” Minister Bernadette Smith, Manitoba’s minister responsible for mental health, says, “We are currently implementing a provincially coordinated suicide prevention strategy including a focus on our relatives in northern and Indigenous communities and 2SLGBTQ+ youth that are over-represented in these alarming statistics.”

‘We miss him’: Ontario dad honours son after death… – CBC
December 3, 2023
**Method warning** Families who have lost loved ones to suicide in connection with an alleged lethal means seller are remembering their loved ones. Stephen Mitchell Jr., 21, died in April 2022. His father, Stephen Mitchell Sr., said he was “a great young man” who “would literally give you the shirt off his back.”