The Hunt for Humans

The Hunt for Humans 8 months ago, I was sitting in a preschool classroom in South Africa, playing with the excited kids on the new jungle gym we just finished setting up. In the jumble of animated children, one little boy stood out to me: the little amount of hair on his head was paper white, his eyelashes were frail and thin, and his skin was pale, as if it had never been touched by the sun. Even though he looked different, his smile mimicked his friends’, and I could see that he was cared for by his community. However, not all people living with Albinism in Africa are as lucky. In fact, most of them are shunned by their peers, discriminated for their condition, and hunted for their body parts. In the world, Tanzania and Malawi in Africa have the largest amount of people with albinism in the world, mostly caused by genetic mutations due to marriages within families. A person with albinism suffers from the lack of melanin production, which causes health problems such as skin damage, as 100% of observed albinos in Africa show signs of skin damage by the first year of life(Cruz-Inigo). However, albinos are not only affected by their health conditions, as they also face immense danger due to the society in Africa. The overall public is unaware of what albinism truly is and instead resorts to superstitions. Some albino kids do not even survive past birth as they are being killed due to the myth that albino kids are cursed. Those who do make it to childhood suffer constantly as they are persecuted by the belief that the bones of albinos contain gold and fortune(White). In Tanzania, there have been 75 murders of albinos in 17 years because albinos are hunted for their limbs to be sold as good-luck charms. Due to this market of body parts, only 2% of Tanzanian albinos survive past their 40th birthday(White). Aside from believing in superstitions, the reason why so many people murder albinos is because they can make immense amounts of money: up to $75,000 can be offered a set of arms, legs, ears, and genitals(Cruz-Inigo), while an average Tanzania average income is $400 per year(Quinn). This means that some farmers feel inclined to work for witch doctors as they presume they are not even hurting real humans. Because of this, albinos live in fear because they can always be snatched on their way to school or even in their own homes(Dixon). Not only do albinos suffer because of the witch doctor practice, they are also hurt by the communities around them. In Malawi, “it is a common belief that albinos have low brain capacity and are unable to function at the same level as ‘normal people,’” which causes albino students to be discriminated(Cruz-Inigo). Albinos have the same capability to understand information as other students, yet the teachers and students often oppress them. Since albinos do not receive a fair education, they end up working in plantations where they are exposed to strong sunlight every day, contributing to their low life expectancy(Cruz-Inigo). Therefore, this mistreatment by society severely impacts the future of those living with albinism. While it may seem like the future for albinos is bleak, programs such as the Tanzania Albino Center are working to bring awareness to the public. So far, governments in Africa have been ineffective as no major reforms have been made to help those with albinism(Cruz-Inigo). However, with the help of organizations, more people can urge governments in Africa to make larger reformations to stop the hunt for humans once and for all. Works cited: Cruz-Inigo, Andres E. “Albinism in Africa: Stigma, Slaughter and Awareness Campaigns.” Dermatologic Clinics, PlumX Metrics , Jan. 2010, www.derm.theclinics.com/article/S0733-8635(10)00140-3/fulltext. Dixon, Robyn. “In Parts of Africa, People with Albinism Are Hunted for Their Body Parts. The Latest Victim: a 9-Year-Old Boy.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 15 June 2017, www.latimes.com/world/africa/la-fg-malawi-albinos-hunted-2017-story.html. n/a. “For the Colour of Their Skin.” The Economist, The Economist Newspaper, 9 June 2016, www.economist.com/news/leaders/21700395-superstition-fuelling-grisly-trade-human-body-parts-tanzania-shows-how-it-can-be Quinn, Shannon. “10 Tragic Facts About Albino Hunting In Africa.” Listverse, 20 June 2017, listverse.com/2017/06/20/10-tragic-facts-about-albino-hunting-in-africa/. White, Charles. “Albinos Are Being Hunted in Africa and 'Harvested' for Their Body Parts.”Metro, 20 Feb. 2017, metro.co.uk/2017/02/20/witch-doctors-are-harvesting-albinos-body-parts-for-medicine-6460173/. https://www.google.com/search?biw=1196&bih=652&tbs=sur%3Afm&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=Haq0Ws2GJsvh0gKr1LXADg&q=albino+kid&oq=albino+kid&gs_l=psy-ab.3..0l10.8089.8606.0.8739.4.4.0.0.0.0.100.283.2j1.3.0....0...1c.1.64.psy-ab..1.3.283....0.uZlJUNZMXJ4&safe=active&ssui=on#imgrc=8Hm24GqLcOBd8M: