How will I get to my adult years and survive this? People with albinism are frequently shunned, attacked and even killed across Africa. In many countries, their body parts are believed to bring wealth and good luck and are prized in witchcraft for use in charms and magical potions. Ero got through school by getting another student to copy the exam questions down from the chalkboard for her in exchange for the answers. More than attacks have taken place in 26 African countries since , with almost two-thirds of the victims being children, she said. Ero is drawing up an action plan which will use online fundraising to buy iron bars and sturdy locks for the doors of impoverished rural families at risk of attack. Reducing stigma is also key, she said, as many fathers walk out when their wives give birth to a child with albinism. Fathers, uncles, aunts and stepmothers are often involved in attacks on children with albinism, she said, leading to underreporting of such crimes. Discover Thomson Reuters. Directory of sites.


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Chigumbura was jobless, with no skills and no prospects. Chigumbura was not even permitted to visit her daughter. When she came by, the grandmother would spin stories to shoo her away, telling her that her baby was in Mozambique, for example.
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Baraka was brutally attacked with a machete just because he has albinism. Learn more In many parts of Africa, people with albinism are misunderstood, mistreated and even attacked or killed. We work for a day when people with albinism will take their rightful place in every level of society and the days of discrimination will be a faint memory. All donations are deductible for income tax purposes in Canada and the USA. All administration costs are covered by a generous benefactor. Under The Same Sun is committed to donor privacy. We respect your privacy and do not rent, sell, exchange or share our email or mailing lists.
But she has albinism, a condition that leaves her without any pigmentation -- white skin, bleach-blond hair and pale blue eyes. She sticks out in a crowd of her black peers, which is about more than just being different: It's increasingly dangerous. In Tanzania, like most of sub-Saharan Africa, people with the hereditary condition are often thought of as having supernatural powers, which makes them a target. At least 20 Tanzanians have been murdered this year alone, mutilated for their body parts, which are then sold on the black market by witch doctors. The estimated , albinos in Tanzania are on edge, feeling as if they are being hunted. A few weeks ago on her way to school in Dar es Salaam, she was spotted by human poachers.