Suicide Among Nonwhites

Abstract

Suicide among nonwhites was studied using the case files of the office of the Medical Examiner of Metropolitan Dade County in Miami, Florida. A total of 116 cases, during the years 1982-1986, were analyzed as to the age, sex, cultural background, cause of death, blood alcohol content at autopsy, and reason for the suicide of the victim. By analyzing the ethnic/cultural backgrounds of the victims, it was noted that the overall rate of suicide among nonwhites in Dade County was 5 per 100,000 population per year. However, the rate varies within the overall group such that black-Hispanics, American Indians, and Haitians have suicide rates of 13.9, 11, and 3.1 per 100,000 population per year, respectively. Some of these rates are higher than the U.S. national nonwhite suicide rate of 7 per 100,000 population. Interestingly, while suicide rates are variable, the reasons listed for the suicide and the high frequency of young adult victims are similar to those for whites. A discussion ensues concerning this similarity and what future work in the field remains to be done.