TresSugar

Clash of Cultures Puts Latina Teens in Danger of Suicide

TresSugar — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:50:13 -0700

According to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, one out of seven Latina teenagers attempts suicide.

Psychologist Dr. Luis Zayas of Washington University, who has spent the last 25 years studying Latina teens, believes that this rate is so high because of the teens' troubled relationships with their mothers. Usually the child of poor immigrant parents, the troubled teen is caught between her parents' values and the ones she sees growing up in the US.

American teens, says Dr. Zayas, have "very different models about what girls should do, can do and are permitted to do." For Francisca Abreu, now 15, clashing with her Dominican mother led to depression, a suicide attempt, and pregnancy at 14. Her mother Isabel wanted Francisca to stay home, clean the house, and learn to cook. Not surprisingly, Francisca wanted to go out with her friends.

"Teenagers have certain freedoms; they don't need to consult with their parents to make certain decisions," Dr. Zayas says. "That's the culture that's here, and inserted in that is the Latino family that says the family is much more important than the individual."

After giving birth to her daughter Destiny at 14 and lots of therapy, Francisca says she finally understands what her mother went though. "All she did was be a good mother, sacrifice her life for us," Francisca says. "That's all she did."

Did you grow up in an immigrant family and deal with the clash of cultures as a teen?

Life For Afghan Women: Not Better Under Karzai

TresSugar — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:45:00 -0700

Women everywhere fight for their rights - but women in Afghanistan have it particularly bad.

BBC reporter Jane Corbin was invited by a French charity, based in Herat, Afghanistan, that treats women who have self-immolated. Most of these women set fire to themselves to escape a forced marriage or a violent husband. In the photo above, a woman comforts her 20-year-old daughter in the hospital. In an attempted suicide to protest a forced marriage to an elderly man and escape rumors of an affair with a younger one, she set fire to herself and now suffers from burns over 85 percent of her body.

Although women were promised equality and human rights by the introduction of democracy, a new constitution, and President Hamid Karzai’s presidency in 2004, the reality of their situation is still bleak.

Sixty percent of women are still forced into marriage as children, sometimes as young as nine or 10. Since Westerners intervened, this was supposed to have changed under a law that stated girls under 16 should not be married. But police don't always investigate the crimes, and male judges often reduce the sentences of men guilty of harming women.

Some women are standing up to the Taliban, which is trying to turn back any minuscule gains women may have from new leadership. Prosecutor Maria Bashir, who requires security guards and has survived bombing attacks, is trying to protect women from men even though laws are supposed to do this. Bashir does this even though it puts her family in danger - the son of another lawyer was beheaded by people who thought he was her son.

A news story today makes an Afghan woman's plight almost unthinkable: a law has passed that allows a man to starve his wife if she refuses his sexual demands. Some accuse Karzai of allowing this barbaric law to pass so that he can get support from the conservative Shia support in next week’s presidential election.

There is a sliver of hope: there are women activists like Bashir who risk their lives fighting for women’s rights and, in spite of an 80 percent illiteracy rate among Afghan women, girls still dream of going to school and having a career.

UK to Air Terminally Ill Man's Suicide on Television

CitizenSugar — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 11:30:46 -0800

Tomorrow night a documentary about a terminally ill man will air on British television. This won't be live TV, as the moment the man ends his life by drinking a lethal dose of sedatives and setting a timer to switch off his ventilator will be shown.

The subject of the documentary is Craig Ewert, a 59-year-old father of two, whose life will soon be cut short due to motor neuron disease (MND), which has also taken away the use of his legs. Instead of continuing in his sick body (he calls it a "living tomb") Craig decides to go to a Swiss clinic and end his life with his wife of 37 years by his side.

Pro-life groups are among the critics who think the documentary should not be played on television. Some worry that airing the action could influence others to commit suicide. Do you think the suicide should be shown? Would you watch it?

UK Won't Clarify Assisted Suicide Law For Sick Woman

LibertySugar — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 09:00:56 -0700

Debbie Purdy is 45 and suffering from debilitating and progressive multiple sclerosis. Worried that her husband would be prosecuted in the UK if he traveled with her to Switzerland so she could die, Debbie asked the public prosecutor for a legal opinion. When the prosecutor refused clarification of the UK's assisted suicide law, she went to the High Court to argue that her human rights were violated because she was not provided guidance. This week, the UK High Court ruled against her, and Debbie says she still does not know whether her husband will be prosecuted if he helps her commit suicide abroad.

The court explained that the ambiguity in the law was there on purpose: "The offence of assisted suicide is very widely drawn to cover all manner of different circumstances - only Parliament can change it."

To find out how UK courts have treated previous citizens that went abroad with relatives to help them die, read more.

Although the relatives of the 100 UK citizens who have traveled before to a Swiss clinic have not been charged, aiding and abetting a suicide carries a penalty of up to 14 years in prison. Do you think Debbie's human rights have been violated? If Parliament decides to change the law, should they just make assisted suicide legal?

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Front Page: Tree-Sitters Climb Down, Quake Shakes Iran, More Calling Suicide Hotline, US Deficit at $438 Billion

CitizenSugar — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 07:00:28 -0700

Tree-Sitters Climb Down:
After a 21-month occupation, four remaining tree-sitters in an oak grove on the UC Berkeley campus, climbed down and into police custody. School officials had cut off food and water supplies Monday and were prepared to remove the activists using force. The tree-sitters were trying to stop the construction of a $125 million sports center which threatened 42 trees on campus.

Quake Shakes Iran:
A 6.1 magnitude earthquake has hit southern Iran near the site of a large Iranian oil refinery, injuring 22 and killing three. Officials fear the quake damaged older parts in the refinery. Iran is the world's fourth largest oil exporter, the refinery struck processes 320,000 barrels a day.

More Calling Suicide Hotline:
More Americans are calling the government's suicide hotline, 47,000 of them in the last month alone. The line receives a 10 percent increase every month, which the staff attributes to more people knowing about it, than an increase in the suicidal. In 2005, the last year of the data, there were more than 32,600 suicide deaths.
US Deficit at $438 Billion:
The US budget deficit is set to reach $438 billion in 2009 according to Congressional Budget Office estimates. The figure doesn't take into account government costs associated with taking over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The previous record for deficit was $413 billion in 2004. Last year's deficit was $161 billion.

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Soldier Suicide Deaths Could Surpass Combat Deaths

LibertySugar — Tue, 06 May 2008 14:30:41 -0700

The harsh reality that suicides may outnumber combat deaths among those who have served in Afghanistan and Iraq is prompting preventative action.

Yesterday, the head of the National Institute on Mental Health offered depressing figures to the American Psychiatric Association. Of the 1.6 million troops deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq, almost 20 percent show symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression, or both. They estimate that 70 percent do not seek treatment for these conditions, which can lead to substance abuse and suicide. Mental health professionals, who treat veterans, were urged to proactively recognize and treat such symptoms.

In a hopeful move, last week the Secretary of Defense announced that military personnel seeking help for PTSD will no longer get that positive action counted against them for security clearance purposes.

In addition, some want a PTSD diagnosis to make a servicemember eligible for the Purple Heart, bringing the hidden wound out of the shadows.

Are you aware of this long-term cost of war? Do members of society have an obligation to support returning veterans? If so, how can we fulfill such duty? Are you happy to see that both the military and mental health professionals are trying to address the psychological scars of warfare?

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Group Therapy: How can I help my fiance cope?

Mon, 06 Aug 2007 03:00:00 -0700

Almost seven months ago, my fiance's best friend killed himself. This was devastating to him, because they did everything to together and had been best friends for about six or seven years. It was a very hard time for him and for me, because I felt like I was useless, and naturally it's very hard to watch a loved one in pain. I find him crying sometimes, and lately it's been pretty bad for him. He's been hurting a lot still. I offer to listen and let him talk about it, but I have never really been able to get much out of him. I just don't know how to help him cope, I'm afraid to say the wrong thing. What can I do to help him cope?

We're both also huge horror movie fans, so occasionally a scene will pop up where someone shoots themselves. I find this very uncomfortable and can only imagine what is running through his head at the sight of this. Sometimes I'll just grab his hand and squeeze it slightly or rub it gently, but he'll usually pull away and act like nothing is wrong. I want him to be able to talk to me about this, but I don't want to force it out of him. How can I help him cope with this tragic event?

[EDITOR'S NOTE: To be involved in more GROUP THERAPY, click here]

What Motivates Female Suicide Bombers?

LibertySugar — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 03:00:13 -0700

Last week's terrorist bombing in Iraq, carried out by a woman, made many of you question the logic behind suicide bombings. While men are still far more likely to be suicide bombers than women, more and more women are ready to die and ready to kill. Male or female, the endgame is always the same, but what leads them to a crowded square with a bomb strapped on is not.

Time magazine tells the story of Hasna Maryi, a suicide bomber who found her calling after her brother died en route to his mission when a fellow jihadis's belt prematurely exploded. She was devastated: he would never be a martyr. His only path to salvation, she decided, was for her to complete his mission. Religion was not her motive (she hardly cracked the Koran growing up), but redemption was.

Hasna's story is not an anomaly. Research findings reported in Studies in Conflict and Terrorism found female suicide terrorists were more motivated by personal reasons and more likely to be recruited through peer influence, exploitation, and self-promotion than men, who found their fury in religion and nationalism and were recruited through religious persuasion.

In eJournal USA (as in paid for by the US government, just a disclosure . . .) the article "Women As Victims and Victimizers" examines the complicated question of why? To find out, read more.

What's in it for women? After all men are promised 72 virgins and everlasting paradise. Do women get 72 male virgins? No, of course not. Earthly motives, rather than celestial rewards, appear to inspire - or more likely corner - women into the role.

In fact, the most reliable predictor of a woman's involvement in terrorism is her relationship with a terrorist. Here's how it might happen:

The loss of a loved one, usually the dominant male in their life.
A need to reinvent self because of alleged or real sexual misconduct.
An inability to conceive children or not being considered marriage material.
A desire to improve the status of women in society.
A need to prove that they are just as dedicated as men to the cause.

Women's motivations are undeniably complex and should not be disregarded as pure emotion. But do explanations like these help you understand female bombers? Are they truly different than men? Could it be that these women are already suicidal and their culture provides an acceptable context - even an admirable cause - for them to die?

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Rape Used to Recruit More Than 80 Female Suicide Bombers

LibertySugar — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 14:00:56 -0800

Her nickname is Um al-Mumenin - it means "mother of all believers" - and she was arrested for recruiting more than 80 women to be suicide bombers and masterminding 28 bombings throughout Iraq.

While violence has eased throughout the struggling country, the number of women carrying out suicide bombings has sharply risen according to US military numbers: 36 women in 2008 compared to eight in 2007. Unlike men who are promised everlasting paradise for martyrdom, there is little in it for women. The unsuspecting middle-age madam capitalized on this inequity by orchestrating rapes, only to convince women afterward that suicide bombing was the only way to escape their shame.

Women are ideal candidates because the long, flowing black robes they traditionally wear glide through security. The fact that most checkpoints are guarded by men, who allow them to pass without being searched, only makes things easier.

For now, the only relief in sight is that the US military is recruiting women for Iraqi security who can search women and, hopefully, counter the threat.

Source

Army Suicides Likely Surpass Combat Deaths in January

CitizenSugar — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 13:30:00 -0800

When an Army official says "This is terrifying. We do not know what's going on," there's a problem. It may be looking at the grimmest suicide statistics yet. If the seven confirmed suicides plus 17 pending cases are compared to the 16 combat deaths in January, it seems the Army's previous fear may be reality: more deaths by suicide than combat.

Col. Kathy Platoni, the Army's chief psychologist, cites Winter weather for the sudden rise, but with four suicides last January, that seems tangential at best. More likely, she says, the culprit is multiple deployments, disrupted mental-health care, and the stigma attached to taking antidepressants and seeking therapy.

After record suicide numbers in 2008 (128), the Army is taking more precautions. It will soon begin screening all soldiers to identify those at risk for suicide. A program launching this month will help soldiers recognize suicide signs and employ intervention methods, and another in the Spring will focus on prevention. New training will also prepare soldiers and families to cope with war before, during, and after deployment.

While encouraging, these steps seem so basic and obvious, I do wonder what they did before.

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