A remote indigenous community of 2,000 in northern Ontario, Canada reached its breaking point over the weekend and declared a state of emergency after 11 people attempted suicide. The horrifying weekend for the Attawapiskat First Nation was the continuation of an equally horrifying trend in the community: more than 100 people, or roughly five percent of the population, have attempted suicide since September, the New York Times reports.
The Canadian government responded by sending mental health counselors as indigenous leaders called for greater, long-term support for First Nation communities that have existed as a permanent underclass in the country. “The incident shocked the country, even though it is used to tragedies involving its 1.4 million aboriginals, who largely live in poverty, have a lower life expectancy than other Canadians and are more often victims of violent crime,” according to Reuters. “The reasons for the attempted suicides are varied, but local leaders point to an underlying despondency and pessimism among their people as well as an increasing number of prescription drug overdoses.” The Canadian parliament met for an emergency session Tuesday to address the issue of suicide.
The alarming spike in suicide attempts is not restricted to the Attawapiskat community. “Another Canadian aboriginal community in the western province of Manitoba appealed for federal aid last month, citing six suicides in two months and 140 suicide attempts in two weeks,” according to the BBC. “Suicide and self-inflicted injuries are among the top causes of death for First Nations, Métis and Inuit people, according to studies from Health Canada.”
