Our Children Deserve Better: Confronting Youth Suicide

A Tragedy We Can’t Ignore
In 2019, tragedy struck our community twice in ways that should break all of our hearts. McKenzie Adams, a 9-year-old fourth grader in Demopolis, Alabama, took her own life at her grandmother’s home after facing relentless bullying. That same year, in San Antonio, Texas, a 7-year-old Black boy fatally shot himself with his parents’ gun after severe bullying.

An Epidemic Hidden in Plain Sight
These are not isolated stories. They are part of a painful and growing crisis that too often goes unnoticed: an epidemic of suicide among Black youth. According to the CDC, self-reported suicide attempts among Black youth have jumped by an alarming 73% over the past 25 years.

Why Is This Happening?
When Black children face rejection, bullying, and trauma without healthy coping tools, they usually lean on the most important support systems we have: family, community, and faith institutions. Historically, these networks have offered safety, belonging, and hope. But our communities are under strain. Poverty, violence, underfunded schools, food insecurity, and the lingering effects of the pandemic make it harder for families to protect and nurture their children. An older study from 1980 said it plainly: Black children suffer when the adults they rely on are also struggling. That truth is just as real today.

A System With Too Few Resources
As a physician, I see firsthand how limited our resources are for helping young people in crisis. I often feel I can’t do enough in my own practice. But that doesn’t mean we’re powerless.

We Must Act—Together
We can speak up. We can demand change. Research from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, in their report “Still Ringing the Alarm: An Enduring Call for Action for Black Youth Suicide Prevention,” offers practical steps we can take. It calls on all of us—healthcare providers, educators, faith leaders, families—to create a world where every Black child feels safe, valued, and supported.

We Owe It to Our Children
Together, we can build a future where no young person feels so alone or hopeless that they see no other way out. Let’s keep talking. Let’s keep listening. And let’s keep fighting for every Black child’s life and future.