Suicides among Black people doubled during COVID-19 lockdowns, while suicides in white individuals were cut in half during the same period. … "There were no increase in suicides in general as we expected, but we did see suicides in Blacks almost double," Nestadt said. The findings, which were published online Dec. 16 in JAMA Psychiatry, suggest that the Black community may have been particularly hard hit by the pandemic and its economic consequences.