We put sex trafficker, Jeffery Epstein, on suicide watch while in prison. Yet, he manages to hang himself with his own bed-sheets. Similarly, we Americans have stood at a comfortable distance while witnessing the same suicide fate of our Native American Indians. Many of our present day U.S. Native America Indians and their Alaska Native counterparts no longer seek to breath the air that was made available to them at creation.

“The U.S. suicide rate is up 33% since 1999, but for Americana Indian and Alaska Native women and men, the increase is even greater: 139 percent and 71 percent, respectively, according to an analysis from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics.” Native youths experience suicide at 2.5 times the national average. And 84% of the adult women from both groups experience violence during their lifetime.

“Cultural disconnection, alienation and pressure to assimilate contribute to higher rates of suicide among American Indians and Alaska Natives.” The national hotline for suicide prevention is 1-800-273-TALK.

This digital isn’t pretty. It isn’t meant to be. Hopefully, it may bring some awareness to our Native American’s plight.