Teenagers Archives - The Minnesota Sun

Youth Homicide Rate Spikes to Highest Level in Two Decades

June 16, 2023 Minnesota Sun Staff

The homicide rate among individuals ages 10 through 24 in 2021 reached its highest level in 20 years, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

In 2021, there were 10.7 homicides for every 100,000 people ages 10 through 24, up from 8.3 in 2016 and 7.3 in 2011, according to the CDC. Suicide and homicide are the second and third leading causes of death, respectively, for people ages 10 through 24, behind accidental deaths that involve motor vehicle crashes and falls, according to the CDC report.

Report: Children Under 14 Dying from Fentanyl Poisoning at Faster Rate than Any Other Age Group

January 17, 2023January 16, 2023 The Center Square

Children under age 14 are dying from fentanyl poisoning at a faster rate than any other age group in the U.S., according to a new analysis from Families Against Fentanyl.

In the past two years, synthetic opioid (fentanyl) deaths among children surged.

Fentanyl-related deaths among infants (children under age one) quadrupled from 2019 to 2021; more than tripled among children between the ages of 1 and 4 and nearly quadrupled among children between the ages of 5 and 14.

Study: Teen Cannabis Use Increases, Mental Health Declines in States with Fewer Legal Restrictions

July 5, 2022July 4, 2022 The Center Square

States that have legalized marijuana have seen increasingly strong THC products and a rise in mental health issues among teenagers, a newly released nationwide study reports.

The Drug Free America Foundation authored the study, given first to The Center Square, which reports on “an association between adolescent cannabis use, the use of high potency cannabis products, and increased risk of psychosis.”

Mayor Frey Pleads with Minneapolis Schools to Stay Open so Kids Can’t Carjack

January 10, 2022January 9, 2022 Minnesota Sun Staff

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey is calling on local schools to remain open so that juveniles have far fewer opportunities to engage in carjackings and other crimes.

Frey made his plea at a Wednesday press conference with Deputy Chief Amelia Huffman on the city’s high violent crime rate.

“We’ve gotta keep the schools open. This is very clear to me,” he said. “Yes, we need to make sure we’re abiding by the necessary safety precautions. Yes, we need to make sure anyone from parents to teachers to students are protected in full from the dangers associated with a global pandemic, and we need to make sure the students are in the schools and that they’re able to learn.”

NYT Report Suggests One-Third of TikTok Users Might Be Under 14

August 16, 2020August 15, 2020 Minnesota Sun Staff

Roughly a third of TikTok’s 49 million daily users in the United States are 14 years old or younger, The New York Times reported Friday, citing internal documents.

The Chinese app’s workers noticed videos from children who appear much younger that remained on the video-streaming platform for weeks, a former employee told the Times. The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), passed in 1998, requires internet companies to obtain parental permission before gathering data from adolescents under 13.

Experts Explain Possible Reasons Behind a 56 Percent Jump in Youth Suicide Rate in 10 Years

October 23, 2019October 22, 2019 Minnesota Sun Staff

The national youth suicide rate has increased by 56% in 10 years, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Commentary: How Our Culture Disempowers Teens

July 28, 2019July 27, 2019 Minnesota Sun Staff

Teenagers are extraordinarily capable. Louis Braille invented his language for the blind when he was 15. Mary Shelley, daughter of libertarian feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, wrote Frankenstein when she was 18. As a young teen, Anne Frank documented her life of hiding from the Nazis during World War II. Malala Yousafzai won the Nobel Prize at 17.

Commentary: Three Groups of People Disproportionately Harmed by Minimum Wage Laws

May 19, 2019May 19, 2019 Minnesota Sun Staff

by Bill Wirtz Minimum wage laws are intended to help those who are making very little money, yet they achieve quite the opposite. Can you really say you stand for the disadvantaged if you support minimum wage laws? Moral Superiority Minimum wage laws have been around for a while,…