Partner with Communities and Groups Disproportionately Impacted by Suicides and Homicides by Firearm

Strategy Description

Staff conducting outreach should establish partnerships with community- and state-level organizations and others who serve populations disproportionately impacted by suicide and homicide by firearms. Evidence shows that community leaders and those with lived experience of being impacted by suicides and homicides by firearm are trusted messengers (among people in groups with elevated rates of suicide) for communication regarding firearm violence prevention and information about crisis lines and/or other agencies that provide crisis support.

Action Steps Based on the Literature

Train crisis staff who conduct outreach on best practices: Educate staff doing outreach on the disparities associated with firearm violence¹, including suicides and homicides, and including how to effectively engage with these disproportionately affected populations². This should include a focus on culturally competent and trauma-informed information while promoting the availability and support of the crisis line and/or other crisis services. Staff should know how the crisis line and/or other crisis service engages in cultural humility and trauma-informed practices³.
Partner with community- and state-level groups: Collaborate with organizations representing these populations to build trust and discuss firearms, suicide prevention, and available crisis support services, with information tailored to specific cultural and social contexts³.
Promote the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or other crisis lines: Actively promote the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or other crisis lines as a free, 24/7 resource for crisis support within these communities², providing someone to talk to. There are also specialized 988 Lifelines available, like the 988 LGBTQI+ Youth line, the Veteran’s Crisis Line, the Spanish line, and the Deaf, Hard of Hearing and Hearing Loss Line.
Engage Trusted Messengers: Involve community leaders from populations with elevated risk of suicide and homicide and individuals with related lived experiences to improve firearm violence prevention awareness, crisis line and/or other crisis service awareness, identify barriers, and increase the credibility of prevention messages⁴. It may also be beneficial to collaborate with firearm experts to discuss secure storage^5,6.
Address Social Determinants of Health: Partner with organizations that address upstream challenges such as unemployment, housing, and food insecurity, which contribute to increased suicide by firearm risk⁷. This partnership may include referrals to and from the crisis line and/or other crisis service.

Evidence Summary

Firearm-related injuries and deaths vary by race, age, ethnicity, and gender¹. For example, firearm homicide victim rates are the highest among teens and young adults, Black or African American persons, American Indian or Alaska Native persons, and Hispanic or Latinx persons¹. Firearm suicide rates are the highest among older adults, American Indian or Alaska Native persons, and non-Hispanic white persons¹. Suicide by firearm has also increased in non-Hispanic Black youth³. Other examples of groups experiencing suicide health disparities include veterans, people who live in rural areas, sexual minorities, middle-aged adults, people of color, and tribal populations⁸.

According to the CDC, various individual, relationship, community, and societal factors contribute to firearm violence and suicide risk¹. Addressing social determinants of health, such as unemployment, housing insecurity, and barriers to healthcare in these populations can help reduce suicide rates, especially in groups that have seen significant increases post-COVID-19, like non-Hispanic Black populations⁷. For people who are disproportionately at risk for suicide, close connections and loved ones can serve critical roles as trusted messengers for support and resources. There is a need for more awareness of crisis lines among these trusted messengers².

Involving community leaders and individuals with lived experiences from these populations can improve the success of suicide prevention efforts by identifying and addressing barriers that might not be visible otherwise⁴. Partnering with small community-based organizations may be beneficial to center the voices of Black youth, for example, in suicide prevention efforts³. Collaborating with trusted messengers from within the firearms community can be helpful in promoting secure storage practices^5,6. This approach can also increase the credibility of firearm violence prevention messages and programs. For instance, firearm owners can provide culturally sensitive insights on secure storage practices, while people with lived experience can offer perspectives on the social and structural factors contributing to suicide risk⁷. Engaging public and private sector community partners can further enhance these efforts by addressing upstream challenges that increase suicide risk, such as unemployment and food insecurity⁷.

Finally, according to the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, it is important to evaluate the implementation of the Lifeline and other crisis lines to understand the impact among Black youth and other communities of color, and to share this information publicly³. For communities of color, much concern has been expressed regarding the use of law enforcement for rescue and involuntarily hospitalizations; it is important to share the data around this with impacted communities³.

References

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC]. (2024). Fast Facts: Firearm Injury and Death. https://www.cdc.gov/firearm-violence/data-research/facts-stats/index.html
Ad Council Research Institute. (2024). 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Messaging and Communications to Trusted Messengers of People Disproportionately Impacted by Suicide. Retrieved from https://suicidepreventionmessaging.org/sites/default/files/2024-05/988%20FR_Trusted%20Messengers_Report_Final-508.pdf
Johns Hopkins for Gun Violence Solutions. (2023). Still Ringing the Alarm: An Enduring Call to Action for Black Youth Suicide Prevention. Retrieved from https://publichealth.jhu.edu/sites/default/files/2023-08/2023-august-still-ringing-alarm.pdf
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [HHS]. (2024). National Strategy for Suicide Prevention. Retrieved from https://www.hhs.gov/programs/prevention-and-wellness/mental-health-substance-abuse/national-strategy-suicide-prevention/index.html
Betz, M. E., Harkavy-Friedman, J., Dreier, F. L., Pincus, R., & Ranney, M. L. (2021). Talking about “firearm injury” and “gun violence”: Words matter. American Journal of Public Health, 111(12), 2105–2110. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306525
Christian, H., Crasta, D., Lloyd-Lester, G., True, G., Goodman, M., Bass, B., Coric, K., Ruetten, T., Lane, R., & Khazanov, G. (2024). Engaging suicide prevention and firearm stakeholders in developing a workshop promoting secure firearm storage for suicide prevention. Injury Epidemiology, 11(1), 26. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40621-024-00511-7
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC]. (2024). Health Disparities in Suicide. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/disparities/

Implementation Examples

The University of Michigan and the Michigan Department of Health Services partnered with their child welfare administration to implement the state’s Garrett Lee Smith Youth Suicide Prevention Program, which included participating in developing learning resources and protocols focused on secure household firearm storage to support child welfare staff in responding to youth with an elevated risk of suicide.⁴

Geared toward older adults (who have higher rates of suicide by firearm), the Firearm Life Plan resource provides an easy-to-use toolkit to facilitate conversations about firearms, aging, and planning for the future together with people and their family members. The resource was developed by the University of Colorado through interviews with firearm owners and family members across the U.S. The website includes a firearm inventory worksheet, a legacy map worksheet, conversation starters, and warning signs and assessments.

While not specific to demographics or firearms, the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute developed the 988 in Wisconsin data dashboard, which includes public-facing data on the percentage of Wisconsin Lifeline contacts that result in an emergency intervention or welfare check (both may involve law enforcement response in Wisconsin). This information can be shared with the community to help understand how often these outcomes occur.

Implementation Resources

There are best practices for language to use around preventing firearm suicides, firearm homicides, and unintentional shooting⁴. Recommended phrases related to this strategy include:
- Talk about “communities that are disproportionately affected by violence”
- Describe the high relative risk of firearm injury and death among young Black and Hispanic men and the structural racism that underlies that reality

While not specific to firearms, the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention created the Messaging and Communications to Trusted Messengers of People Disproportionately Impacted by Suicide guide and the Messaging and Communications to People at Higher Risk or Disproportionately Impacted by Suicide guide based on formative research. They also created communication insight documents for groups disproportionately impacted by suicide:

Related Strategies

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