Editor's Note: This story was originally published in the latest issue of the Norwood News, out now.
Health care professionals and the city’s elected officials are looking for ways to tackle the daunting problem of teen suicides, as data from several sources shows that Hispanic teenagers, especially young Latinas, are disproportionately at risk for self-harm compared to other racial groups.
In the Bronx, 15.3 percent of Latina teenagers reported having attempted suicide in a 2009 survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which looked at youth behavior (numbers in Staten Island and Brooklyn were even higher).
City data shows the same disturbing trend: according to a 2008 report from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, 46 percent of Hispanic teenage girls polled reported feelings of “persistent sadness.”
“It’s pretty startling across the board,” said Alan Ross, executive director for the Samaritans of New York, a nonprofit suicide prevention organization that also runs a 24-hour emergency hotline.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Startling Statistics Put Focus on Latina Suicides
Monday, May 23, 2011
Bronx News Roundup, Monday, May 23
Welcome back to the program, ladies and gentleman of the Bronx and beyond. Let's get down to Bronx business. To the news!
Weather: Our first post-Bronx Week day will, unfortunately, be more of the same: cloudy with a chance of thunderstorms -- the National Weather Service has issued a "hazardous weather" warning. If we can gut it out until Friday, however, we might see some sunshine.
Story of the Day: Bronx Week Honoree's Life Comes "Full Circle"
The 40th edition of Bronx Week ended yesterday with a parade and festival on Mosholu Parkway that featured more than 80 of the borough's schools and culminated with a performance by rap legend Big Daddy Kane. Before the parade, a quartet of successful Bronxites -- actor/playwright Chazz Palmintieri, "Fame" star Irene Cara, actress Joy Bryant and TMZ executive producer Charles Latibeaudiere -- were honored with their very own street signs on the Bronx Walk of Fame and given Bronx blankets and a plaque. The Wall Street Journal caught up with Bryant as she prepared for her walk of fame induction. Turns out, she already has a landmark named after her: Manhattan's Bryant Park, she told WSJ, joking. In her speech at the Bronx Ball on Saturday night, Bryant said she talked about how her career in show business had come full-circle when she filmed "Get Rich or Die Trying" close to her childhood home near Yankee Stadium. "They told us we were shooting near Yankee Stadium, and we were actually shooting in my neighborhood. I talked about what a trip that was, how it came full circle, how it was so crazy shooting a movie a few doors down from my bedroom window," Bryant told WSJ. "It made me really feel blessed to be from the Bronx."
Quick Hits:
And then there are other Bronxites who make a name for themselves in other capacities, like drug dealing. Police say a handful of Bronxites were at the top of a major narcotics operation that was recently dismantled in Scranton, Penn.
For a mayor who prides himself on getting things done, Daily News transportation columnist Pete Donahue says Bloomberg has fallen short with his plans to improve mass transit.
Back from a mysterious illness, Throgs Neck teen Mark Schoenstein is now raising money for the Blythedale Children's Hospital where he spent nearly five months recovering.
A Bronx man was acquitted of murder charges largely because the arresting officer admitted to being embroiled in the NYPD's widespread ticket-fixing scandal, which dealt a huge blow to his credibility.
This is an alarming statistic: A federal study says one in six Latina teenagers in the Bronx have tried to commit to suicide.
The city is apparently following up on news reports about illegally subdivided apartments in the Bronx and elsewhere.
One of the most popular Bronx Week festival events is the arm wrestling competition. Yesterday, Queens resident John Kosmidas took took home the title for strongest left arm, while Brooklyn's Joyce "Queen of Arms" Boone won the ladies division. A 13-year-old Bronx girl, Jaelen Vasquez, came in third place among heavyweights.
Here's some footage from the Bronx Week Parade, where the Bronx Children's Museum made its debut.
