KEY POINTS
- 60% of the victims experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness
- Disparities among LGBTQ+ students were also recorded
- The CDC recommended various school activities to deal with the violence
One in seven teen girls (14%) of female students reported that they had been forced to have sex without consent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Of all the victims, 60% experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, while nearly 25% made suicide plans, the agency added.
The CDC‘s biannual Youth Risk Behavior Survey collected data from more than 17,200 students across 152 public and non-public schools across the United States.
“If you think about every 10 teen girls that you know, at least one and possibly more has been raped, and that is the highest level we’ve ever seen,” Kathleen Ethier, director of the CDC’s Division of Adolescent and School Health, said, as quoted by Washington Post. “We are really alarmed.”
The figure has gotten worse since ten years ago, with the 2011 survey showing 12% of female students reporting violence. Meanwhile, male students who said they had been forced into sex remained at 4%.
The threat is even worse for the queer community. According to the 89-page report, one in five LGBTQ+ students and 37% of students who have ever had a partner of the same gender said they had been forced into having sex.
“As in previous reports, we continue to see disparities among students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning, or another non-heterosexual identity (LGBQ+) or who have had any same-sex sexual partners compared to their peers,” the CDC wrote.
“Close to 70% of LGBQ+ students experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness during the past year and more than 50% had poor mental health during the past 30 days. Almost 25% attempted suicide during the past year.”
The CDC also found some disparities among racial and ethnic groups, highlighting that American Indian or Alaska Native students were more likely than others to have been forced to have sex.
“Large percentages of students across all racial and ethnic groups experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness during the past year, and there were increases in this experience for all groups from 2011 to 2021,” the agency wrote.
“Of note, although Black students were less likely to report poor mental health and persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness than some other groups of students, they were significantly more likely than Asian, Hispanic, and White students to have attempted suicide.”
The agency noted that school activities like improved access to mental health services, more classroom management training for teachers, school clubs that foster gay-straight alliances, high-quality health education and enforcement of anti-harassment policies could make a huge difference in the lives of teenagers.
“The more of these things you do, the better the impact in the school environment,” Ethier said, per the Post.
If you have thoughts of suicide, confidential help is available for free at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Call 1-800-273-8255. The line is available 24 hours, every day.
