美国国家公共电台 NPR--Deaths of despair also affect Native American Communities, study shows

Deaths of despair also affect Native American Communities, study shows

Transcript¹

Deaths of despair were thought to primarily affect white communities but a new study in The Lancet finds Native American communities have seen the biggest rise in such deaths in recent years.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

This next story takes a new look at how Americans for more than a decade have been dying younger than people in other developed countries. We want to warn you, this report will discuss suicide. Researchers have attributed the higher death rates in the U.S. to what they call deaths of despair, from suicide, drug overdoses and alcoholic² liver disease. A new study in The Lancet indicates these deaths have affected³ American Indian and Alaska Native communities far more than previously⁴ reported. NPR's Rhitu Chatterjee has more.

RHITU CHATTERJEE, BYLINE⁵: Back in 2015, two Princeton economists⁶ published a study showing that deaths among middle-aged⁷ white Americans had risen dramatically between 1999 and 2013.

JOSEPH FRIEDMAN: It means premature⁸ mortality.

CHATTERJEE: Dr. Joseph Friedman is a physician and researcher at the University of California, Los Angeles.

FRIEDMAN: It's an age group where - ideally, no one should die in that age group, certainly not of drug overdose and suicide.

CHATTERJEE: But when he and his colleagues took a closer look at the data, they realized that these deaths of despair weren't just affecting white communities.

FRIEDMAN: The whole sort of premise⁹ of the deaths-of-despair idea that this is unique to white communities really didn't stand up when you actually took a careful look at the data.

CHATTERJEE: He and his colleagues found that the rise in midlife deaths was much higher in American Indian and Alaska Native people, a group that had been entirely¹⁰ left out of the original 2015 study.

FRIEDMAN: In the same period that deaths among white Americans did go up by about 9%, deaths among Native Americans went up by 30%.

CHATTERJEE: Friedman's collaborator¹¹ Joseph Gone is a psychologist at Harvard. He's also a member of the Aaniiih/Gros Ventre tribal¹² nation of Montana.

JOSEPH GONE: The entire narrative¹³ about deaths of despair among white Americans depended on the invisibility, or, we might say, the erasure¹⁴ of Indigenous¹⁵ presence and visibility in those data sets. And that's a problem from our vantage point.

CHATTERJEE: He says the recent rise in deaths among white Americans is, of course, alarming. But the factors driving these deaths have affected American Indian and Alaska Native people for much longer.

GONE: Indian country problems rise and fall with economy like everyone else's, but we're just used to these lack of resources and opportunities for a whole bunch of reasons that go way back.

CHATTERJEE: Spero Manson is Pembina Chippewa from North Dakota and directs the University of Colorado Centers for American Indian and Alaska Native Health. He wasn't involved in the new study.

SPERO MANSON: If you look at matters of poverty, education, decreased employment opportunities, restricted access to other kinds of resources, they're very powerful and widely present in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

CHATTERJEE: But, he adds, addressing deaths of despair will also need a focus on the successes of Native communities. For example, these communities had high COVID-19 vaccination¹⁶ rates. Manson says reducing deaths of despair will also require harnessing the strength and resilience of Native communities and supporting them with resources.

Rhitu Chatterjee, NPR News.

FADEL: If you or someone you know is in crisis, you can call or text the 988 hotline - just those three numbers, 9-8-8.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。

3 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

4 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 middle-aged   

adj.中年的

参考例句：

• I noticed two middle-aged passengers.我注意到两个中年乘客。
• The new skin balm was welcome by middle-aged women.这种新护肤香膏受到了中年妇女的欢迎。

8 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。

9 premise   

n.前提；v.提论，预述

参考例句：

• Let me premise my argument with a bit of history.让我引述一些史实作为我立论的前提。
• We can deduce a conclusion from the premise.我们可以从这个前提推出结论。

10 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

11 collaborator   

n.合作者，协作者

参考例句：

• I need a collaborator to help me. 我需要个人跟我合作，帮我的忙。
• His collaborator, Hooke, was of a different opinion. 他的合作者霍克持有不同的看法。

12 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

13 narrative   

n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的

参考例句：

• He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
• Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。

14 erasure   

n.擦掉，删去；删掉的词；消音；抹音

参考例句：

• The past was erased, the erasure was forgotten, the lie became truth. 过去给人擦拭个干净，擦拭的行为又忘了个干净，于是，谎言就变成了真理。 来自英汉文学
• The inspection, modification, replacement or erasure of part of file's contents. 检查、修改、代替或擦去文档内容一部分的过程。 来自互联网

15 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

16 vaccination   

n.接种疫苗，种痘

参考例句：

• Vaccination is a preventive against smallpox.种痘是预防天花的方法。
• Doctors suggest getting a tetanus vaccination every ten years.医生建议每十年注射一次破伤风疫苗。