"I'm stigmatised because I'm albino"

Hate crimes against people with albinism are still rife across the African continent. In 2017, Mail & Guardian reported that in the last ten years, close to 200 killings and more than 500 attacks on people with albinism were reported in 27 sub-Saharan African countries. 

People with albinism are often targeted for their body parts which are sold for various reasons. In 2016, the death of Thandazile Mpunzi, a 20-year-old albino, made headlines after her boyfriend reportedly sold her body parts for muti in a bid to get rich.

Thandazile is one of the few victims whose death made headlines. Many people with albinism are often stigmatised by society because of their skin disorder. One such a person is Annah, a 25-year-old woman from Limpopo. We spoke to Annah about living with her skin condition and how it affects her.

“Growing up albino was very difficult. For my primary schooling, I was taken to a special school for people with disabilities. This wasn’t because I couldn’t do good in school, but merely because I was albino. But being in such a school wasn’t too bad. It was exciting because I also found other people like me. “

Annah says after losing her mom at the age of 11, she had to go stay with her gran and had to leave the special school and attend a Christian school.

“My first day at high school was the worst day of my life. I sat in the first row and I remember a group of crazy boys calling me all sorts of names and making fun of me because of my condition. The class was so big. Whenever they called me names it would pierce my heart. What broke my heart worse was that one of the people who was making fun of me was my very own neighbour, who I had thought, because he knew me, would be accommodative.”

Annah says that experience taught her that not everyone will understand who you are or love you. “I just told myself one day they will grow up. I learned not to take it personally.”

“People in school used to think even my brain can’t work, but I’d prove them wrong by my marks. I would raise my hand in class to show that I am not dumb. I’d always go an extra mile and I made sure that I got good grades. I’d do so well that people started wanting to be my friend just so that I could help them with school work. The best day of my life was 7 April 2017, my graduation day. The day I held my degree in Bachelor of Arts in Media Studies.”

Even though she says university wasn’t bad because there was a lot of diversity, Annah still found it challenging to date, because she didn’t have self-esteem.  

“I was very shy. It took time to build my self-esteem. I didn’t ever expect anyone to tell me ‘I love you’. Having my first boyfriend, I felt honoured that out of all the people he chose me. It got to a point where I began to love myself. I made sure that I don’t associate myself with the stigma and my relationships got better. I knew my worth. That guy boosted my confidence.”

But to this day, Annah says she lives her life in fear because albino people are brutally killed because of their condition. 

“We (albino community) wish people could stop killing us. I am living in fear. Imagine if I were to visit KZN where Thandazile was murdered. I won’t be free. I don’t know if I will be the next victim or not. We don’t want to live in fear in the world that was created for everyone.”

“I wish people could understand that there’s nothing wrong with us. We are all the same. The difference is the skin colour. They should treat us as people, not how we look. People must get to know us and not just judge us based on our skin condition."