World Suicide Prevention Day is observed on September 10 every year to mobilize efforts of individuals to save lives. This year the World Suicide Prevention Day theme is ‘Suicide Prevention: One World Connected‘ reflects the fact that connections are essential at many levels to combat suicide.

Suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people, resulting in about 4,400 deaths per year. Over 14 percent of high school students have considered suicide, and almost 7 percent have attempted it.

At Battered Women’s Support Services we apply a gender lens and see an alarming relation between gender violence and suicide.

  • Over the past decade cases of suicides linked to cyber bullying has grown, research shows  78% of victims bullied online and in person
  • Victims of bullying are between 2 to 9 times more likely to consider suicide than non-victims
  • 10 to 14 year old girls may be at even higher risk for suicide as a result of gender-based violence they experience
  • Nearly 30 percent of students are either bullies or victims of bullying, and 160,000 kids stay home from school every day because of fear of bullying

Gender-based violence has serious long-term impact on the emotional, cognitive, physical, social, and spiritual well-being of girls and women which can lead to serious consequences. Therefore, it is crucial to address this connection to mobilize our efforts to prevent failing girls and women as a result of violence.

Today, our YOUth Ending Violence Team sprung into action to initiate “One Future Without Violence Campaign” to mobilize efforts to save lives.

“Violence against women and girls continues to be epidemic in every continent, country and culture. It is happening everywhere, it is happening in our backyards, and it is affecting all of us.  We are living in this world, but that is not the future we want to live.”

Visit our One Future Without Violence Campaign and show your support by joining us here! We are counting on you to be one of the incredible people who help us to create a future without violence.

Sources: http://www.bullyingstatistics.org/content/bullying-and-suicide.html

http://www.nysenate.gov/files/SuicideBullyingBrochure.pdf

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/cyberbullying-linked-suicides-rising-study-says-1.1213435

 

Last year, Battered Women’s Support Services responded to over 13,000 crisis calls from women and girls to get help and end violence. We could not provide this essential support without your contribution.

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