According to the Center For Native American Youth at the Aspen Institute, hereafter referred to as CFAY, American Indian (AI) and Alaska Native (AN) adolescents have the highest mortality rate caused by suicide than any other ethnic group within the United States (CFAY 2). Within the age group from 12 to 20, violence is the most leading cause of death, namely 75%, including suicide and homicide (CFAY 3). As stated by the Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC) there has been a steep ascent of suicides among Native American tribes since the past ten years and therefore caused tribal chiefs as well as the federal government to take action against this crisis. Although there are many studies on suicidal behavior and suicide itself, only a few take into account several risk and protective factors, which are unique to American Indian and Alaska Native tribes. There are reasons for Native American adolescents to commit suicide that are incomparable to other ethnic groups within the United States, which will be revealed in this paper.
- Quote paper
- Lisa Schreinemacher (Author), 2015, The Native American Youth Suicide Crisis, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1607539
