Suicide and homicide rates among young people are rising alarmingly.

Suicide rates in ages 10 to 24 years old climbed 56% from 2007 to 2017, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The rate of homicide deaths decreased by 23% from 2007 to 2014 but then increased by 18%.

Said Sally Curtin, a CDC statistician, “The chances of a person in this age range dying by suicide is greater than homicide, when it used to be the reverse.”

Area volunteers will join a quarter of a million people walking across the US to draw attention to suicide prevention.

The annual Out of the Darkness Community Walk, hosted by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention South Carolina Chapter will be at 1 pm, Sunday at Columbia Canal and Riverfront Park.

Speakers include Sen. Katrina Shealy, of Lexington, co-chair of the State Suicide Prevention Coalition.

The walk supports the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s education and support programs and its goal to reduce the annual rate of suicide 20% by the year 2025.