Labrador Suicide Rates Twenty Times Higher Than Island – VOCM

A paper published by a doctor in Happy Valley-Goose Bay yesterday shows that suicide rates among Inuit and Innu communities in Labrador are about twenty times higher than in Newfoundland.

Dr. Michael Jong published the paper yesterday in the American Journal of Public Health. Jong says St. John’s is the third happiest city in Canada, and Newfoundland as a whole has the lowest suicide rate in the country. But that’s in stark contrast to Labrador, for many reasons.

He says colonization and loss of culture means many Inuit and Innu people have lost a sense of belonging. He says it leads to addictions and family issues.

Jong says community-led projects to immerse Innu and Inuit youth in their own culture have been very effective. He believes the problem can be fixed, more easily than one might imagine.

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