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There are more than 2.1 million American Indiana and Alaska Native (AI/AN) youth living in the U.S. today. As Native American Heritage Month comes to an end, we reflect on the unique challenges AI/AN young people face and the role we can all play in uplifting and supporting this community.
Due to a legacy of discrimination and oppression within the United States, AI/AN youth suffer from high rates of poverty, violent victimization, substance abuse, historical trauma and lack of access to health insurance and health care. These risk factors contribute to poor mental health and disproportionately higher rates of depression, substance use disorders, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide. In fact, suicide rates among AI/AN persons increased nearly 20% from 2015 to 2020 compared to a less than 1% increase among the overall U.S. population. These drastic disparities require cross-sector solutions to improve mental and physical health outcomes for AI/AN youth and advance health equity in the process.
Lack of access to culturally appropriate mental health care is a major barrier for the disproportionate burden of poor mental health that AI/AN young people face. Culturally competent, trauma-informed approaches are vital to help decrease these mental health disparities and provide AI/AN youth with the care, resources and support needed to help them thrive.
As we celebrate Thanksgiving Day, we also take the time to acknowledge, recognize and honor our nation’s Indigenous history, tradition, and communities. We make a commitment to enhance cultural competence in our work to promote the health of AI/AN youth. The resources below can be used as a starting point for tips and best practices on how school health partners and educators can include Native voices and support the well-being Indigenous youth.
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