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Albinism- Growing up different
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http://www.eastandard.net/mag/InsidePage.php?id=1143997832&cid=499&

The challenges of growing up different

Published on

By Timothy Aseka

I am the first born in a family of five siblings, and the only child with albinism in my family — in fact, in the whole village. Since my birth in 1987, life has been full of challenges.

As a kindergartener at the village day school, I had to bear with children who stared at me continuously as I walked to school, played at break time and went about my chores. Many would greet me in a fake English accent.

Timothy: Government should protect citizens against discrimination. Photo/Maxwell Agwanda
Whenever I walked in public, huge crowds of children would follow me. Surprisingly, even adults would halt their work and stare until I disappeared around the corner or into the horizon.

My father advised me to make friends with the villagers. Whenever they followed, I stopped and shook hands with them. This served me well because soon they stopped whispering and greeted me by my name. Primary school was a nightmare. Albinism is characterised by short sightedness. I couldn’t see the black board. The teacher, being ignorant of my condition, would beat me up and even kick me out of class for what she termed as rudeness and laziness for ‘refusing’ to do her assignments.

To make matters worse, I did not know that a person could sit in the middle of a classroom and still be able to read the board. I did not know how I could make the teacher understand.

I was six years old and all I could do was persevere, be patient and bear the brunt of other people’s ignorance. This continued until a neighbour told my parents about Kibos School for the Blind in Kisumu. I was transferred there.

Supportive parents

A Kiswahili saying goes "uchungu wa mwana aujuae ni mzazi" (the mother knows the pain of her child).

But neither the teacher nor my parents knew the problems I was facing. To them the only difference between me and other children was the difference in skin colour and my difficulty in seeing in bright sunlight. Period.

This may sound weird, considering my father is a university graduate who had grown up with a cousin with albinism.

My mother, a primary school leaver who had never met an albino before, was less ignorant, much kinder and more understanding.

A child with albinism needs supportive parents. My parents’ ignorance led them to respond slowly to my needs. For instance, it took them a long time to realise that I needed a cap, sunglasses and sunscreen lotion. My father, a macho man, discouraged me from using lotions saying they were for women.

Inferiority complex

I had to disobey him sometimes. For instance I had to refuse work that he allocated me in direct sunlight. At times he would beat me, but I stood my ground. I did not know how to express the difficulties I was facing to him, but I knew the consequences of staying in the sun too long.

I am ever grateful to my mother for ensuring I stayed out of the sun and got caps and long-sleeved clothes.

Other challenges, I must admit, have been self-imposed. I have suffered greatly from an inferiority complex. When I joined college, I was acutely aware the institution had never had an albino student. As I pursue my educational goals and try to make friends, I continue to fear rejection, even though I know I should be bigger than that.

I hold great hopes and big dreams. Despite the challenges that I have faced as an albino, I hope society will appreciate people with albinism as normal human beings. Indeed I dream of a future where descendants with my traits will not be stared at, where ignorance shall not dictate how they shall be treated. Albinos who have beaten all odds, such as, Dr Wanyonyi of Kenyatta University, Mr Mwendwa of Kagumo Teachers’ Training College, Ms Mumbi Ngugi, a lawyer and activist and Hon Al-Shymaa Kway-Geer, a Tanzanian MP, inspire me.

October 25, 2008 | 6:35 PM Comments  0 comments

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