A recently published study found that suicide rates among Black girls are not just increasing, but at more than twice the increase rate for Black boys, The New York Times reports.

Researchers have found that suicide rates among the Black community have been rising, with more than 1,800 Black children dying by suicide between 2003 and 2017. But the suicide rate for girls increased an average of 6.6% each year.

Of the girls, almost 40% were between 12 and 14 years old.

The data came as a shock to the lead author of the study, Dr. Arielle H. Sheftall. 

“That was just like, ‘Whoa’ — what’s going on with our Black girls?'” Sheftall said of the findings. “It caught me a little off guard.”

“I think in the past, suicide — or suicidal behavior — was just thought of as a white thing,” Sheftall said. “And that’s not the case.”

Only 35 states were included in their research, which excluded poverty, trauma, mental health care accessibility and LGBTQ+ status as possible risk factors. 

Since the onset of the pandemic, mental health has become a concern among politicians, with researchers saying suicide among Black youth is a public health concern. After calls for social justice reform, New York City revealed a mental health program to dispatch social workers rather than law enforcement to respond to mental health calls, as Blavity previously reported.

LaVome Robinson, a clinical psychologist and professor of psychology at DePaul University in Chicago, said the experiences of Black children "are like none other in the United States."

“We live in a society that marginalizes us — more so probably than any other group — and has historically for years.”

Another study revealed that over the past two decades, Black youth had the highest increase in self-reported suicide attempts, and in 2018, it was discovered that Black children under 13 years old died by suicide at nearly twice the rate of their white counterparts. 

While Sheftall, a principal investigator at the Center for Suicide Prevention and Research at the Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, is unsure of the cause of the increase, she and her colleagues determined some of the children had been diagnosed with ADHD. 

Problems at home and at school were also a factor for the younger children, in addition to a diagnosis of depression or anxiety. Roughly 9% of the older Black girls also reported issues in their relationship, with almost 20% saying an argument had occurred within 24 hours of their death.

The authors of the study concluded conflict resolution and coping mechanisms as possible interventions. 

If you or anyone you know is having thoughts of suicide or battling depression, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255.