The military and veterans’ communities have spent years trying to combat suicide rates much higher than the national average. But within those communities, Americans belonging to racial minority groups are experiencing even higher rates, according to analysis by Military.com.
Based on data from the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Defense Department, the suicide risk among service members and veterans of Asian American and Pacific Islander descent (AAPI) was 350% higher than the national average, and the per capita rate for Black and Hispanic vets and troops was twice the national average in 2021, the last year for which data was available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, VA and DoD.
Those rates are higher than those for white service members and veterans, though that group also sees elevated risk of suicide compared to the civilian population.
Read Next: Air Force Identifies 25-Year-Old Cyber Specialist as Airman Who Set Himself on Fire in Front of DC Embassy
“There are sociopolitical factors in the environment that are creating minority or racialized stress along with the historical underpinnings of racism and racial discrimination in the military,” said Patricia B. Glenn, senior clinical director at the nonprofit organization Stop Soldier Suicide. Glenn added that research is just beginning to understand why there is the disparity in suicide risk.
More than 30,177 service members and veterans who served…
