![Death by suicide among Black children is increasing in Cuyahoga County and across the United States. [Annie Wu / 海角破解版]](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/5b3f2bc/2147483647/strip/true/crop/980x551+0+0/resize/840x472!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Flegacy%2Fimages%2Fnews%2Fnpr%2F2021%2F09%2FADAMHS-Bd.jpg)
A warning, this next story contains mention of suicide.
A new report from in Columbus finds that Black children between the ages of 5 and 12 are twice as likely to die by suicide than white children.
Charde' Hollins with the says suicide rates are up in Black youth.
鈥淚n 2021 so far, there have been 72 deaths by suicide as of August. 13.9% of those deaths were people under the age of 25, and 50% of those deaths were Black youth and young adults.鈥�
Hollins says this increase is due to stigmas surrounding mental health in the Black community and a lack of cultural competency in diagnosing Black children with mental health disorders.
She says misdiagnosis of mental health issues in Black children is also contributing to the increase.
鈥淪o, it鈥檚 just that opportunity for all of us to make sure that we鈥檙e being culturally competent, that we鈥檙e doing our research, that we鈥檙e doing our due diligence to know what the signs and symptoms are for everyone including the Black and brown community, because it can look different. There are some similarities, but there are also differences.鈥�
The ADAMHS Board is partnering with the and the to start a public awareness campaign targeting Black adults and youth called .
If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 800-273-8255. The Crisis Hotline in Cuyahoga County is 216-623-6888, and the Crisis Text number is 741741.
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