I've been spending a lot of time over at promoteprevent.org recently.  www.promoteprevent.org is a part of Education Development Center, Inc.(EDC)—a leading global nonprofit organization established in 1958 that designs, delivers and evaluates innovative programs to address some of the world’s most urgent challenges in education, health, and economic development.  

They follow four guiding principles: 

• Children and youth benefit when schools and communities work together as partners. Issues that children and youth face today—including cyberbullying, mental health, and substance abuse—are too complex for schools to effectively address on their own.
• Systemic change is the best route to connect schools and other youth-serving organizations to create a positive and lasting impact.
• Collecting and using data to guide decision-making about program services and evidence-based programs is essential to effective program maintenance and long-term sustainability.
• Universal mental health promotion and prevention can support all students in achieving success, both in the classroom and in life.

Visit their site and get involved with the incredible work they are doing.

Christian Adamek, a 15-year-old from Huntsville, Alabama, hung himself days after he was arrested for streaking at a high school football game.

This article is a dramatic example of the changing times we live in and the harsh perceptions we're faced with.  
After Adamek’s arrest, the teenager was expelled from school and faced charges of public lewdness. If convicted he could have been placed on the a sex-offender registry.

For the full article...

While DC Comics didn't mean to, they've become an example of the ignorance a majority of people have about the seriousness of suicide.  Recently the comic book publisher announced a contest, “DC Entertainment’s Open Talent Search", to draw in new artistic talent. The contest included drawing several panels of character Harley Quinn in outlandish circumstances; the last of these circumstances had Quinn naked, in a bathtub, surrounded by blow dryers, toasters, and other electronic appliances, apparently preparing to kill herself.  This was done right before National Suicide Prevention Week.

As you can imagine, this didn't sit well with the general public and advocates for suicide awareness.  

Jimmy Palmiotti, who is writing the ongoing Harley Quinn series, attempted to apologize for the mess up saying, "I should have put it clearly in the description that it was supposed to be a dream sequence with Amanda and I talking to Harley and giving her a hard time. I should have also mentioned we were thinking a Mad magazine /Looney Tunes approach was what we were looking for...I am sorry for those who took offense, our intentions were always to make this a fun and silly book that broke the 4th wall, and head into issue 1 with a ongoing story/adventure that is a lot like the past Powergirl series we did. I hope all the people thinking the worst of us can now understand that insulting or making fun of any kind was never our intention."
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention had already voiced their disapproval; calling the contest "insensitive and potentially dangerous," and decried their choice to not go with a more hopeful message.

DC came out again and said, "The purpose of the talent search was to allow new artists an opportunity to draw a single page of a 20-page story. True to the nature of the character, the entire story is cartoony and over-the-top in tone, as Harley Quinn breaks the 4th Wall and satirizes the very scenes she appears in. DC Entertainment sincerely apologizes to anyone who may have found the page synopsis offensive and for not clearly providing the entire context of the scene within the full scope of the story."

Does DC truly understand why the uproar over the panel or is this a PR ploy to ease the tension?  Does it matter?

Suicide is too often used as a punchline or lightly referenced with little to no thought given to the weight it carries.  A comic book company, who ideally caters to younger viewers, may not know that this generation is inundated with violent images.  On top of the that, cyber bullying is in the headlines more and more in reference to suicide.  When an image of a comic book character is shown in a cartoony way, that sends a message.  

This is no longer a case of "Oh, it's just a comic book."  We live in a time where we have a responsibility to understand what are youth are going through.  DC Comics would do well to publish a special suicide awareness story.  Not as a way to say they are sorry but because it's necessary and the right thing to do.  

The Miami Ad School created a series of thought provoking posters aimed at suicide prevention in LGBT youth.  With the tagline “Words Can Kill,” the images demonstrate how bullying with hurtful and derogatory slurs can have serious consequences.  The images are disturbing and shocking, yet serve as a powerful reminder that bullying isn’t always physical.  Just this week a 16-year-old named A.J. Betts from Iowa became the fifth student in five years to take his own life at his school. As his mother said in the wake of his passing, “even if we can save one more life from bullying, that would be a success.”

Visit the The Miami Ad School to see the posters.